A Visit to the United States in 1841
Date: 2004-03-02T00:00:00+00:00
Keywords: United States -- Description and travel; Antislavery movements -- United States -- History -- 19th century; Sturge; Joseph; 1793-1859 -- Travel -- United States; Slavery -- United States -- History -- 19th century; Abolitionists -- United States -- History -- 19th century

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Title: A Visit to the United States in 1841

Author: Joseph Sturge

Release date: March 1, 2004 [eBook #11454]
Most recently updated: December 25, 2020

Language: English

Credits: Produced by Amy Overmyer and PG Distributed Proofreaders

*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK A VISIT TO THE UNITED STATES IN 1841 ***

A VISIT TO THE UNITED STATES IN 1841

| By JOSEPH STURGE   1842

"'Tis liberty alone that gives the flower
Of fleeting life its lustre and perfume;
And we are weeds without it. All constraint,
Except what wisdom lays on evil men,
Is evil; hurts the faculties, impedes
Their progress in the road of science; blinds
The eyesight of discovery; and begets,
In those that suffer it, a sordid mind."

COWPER.

1. Preface to the American Edition
2. Preface to the English Edition
3. A Visit, &c.
4. General Observations

5. Appendix A: ANTI-SLAVERY EPISTLE OF "FRIENDS" IN GREAT BRITAIN.

6. Appendix B: EARLY EFFORTS OF "FRIENDS" IN BEHALF OF NEGRO

7. Appendix C: Report of the Committee of the Yearly Meeting of Friends, &c.

8. Appendix D: ELISHA TYSON.

9. Appendix E: THE "AMISTAD CAPTIVES"

10. Appendix F: Extract from an Essay by WILLIAM JAY

11. Appendix G: OPIUM WAR WITH CHINA.

12. Appendix H: LETTER OF A.L. PENNOCK.

13. Appendix I: GERRIT SMITH'S SLAVES.

14. Appendix K: The Society of Friends in America and the Colonization Society

15. Appendix L: Memorial of citizens of Boston, United States, to the Lords of the Admiralty, Great Britain.

PREFACE
TO THE AMERICAN EDITION.

*       *       *       *       *

Within a few years past, several of our visitors from the other side of the Atlantic, have published their views of our country and her institutions. Basil Hall, Hamilton and others, in their attempts to describe the working of the democratic principle in the United States, have been unfavorably influenced by their opposite political predilections. On the other hand, Miss Martineau, who has strong republican sympathies, has not, at all times, been sufficiently careful and discriminating in the facts and details of her spirited and agreeable narrative.

The volume of Mr. Sturge, herewith presented, is unlike any of its predecessors. Its author makes no literary pretensions. His style, like his garb, is of the plainest kind; shorn of every thing like ornament, it has yet a truthful, earnest simplicity, as rare as it is beautiful. The reader will look in vain for those glowing descriptions of American scenery, and graphic delineations of the peculiarities of the American character with which other travellers have endeavored to enliven and diversify their journals. Coming among us on an errand of peace and good will—with a heart oppressed and burdened by the woes of suffering humanity—he had no leisure for curious observations of men and manners, nor even for the gratification of a simple and unperverted taste for the beautiful in outward nature. His errand led him to the slave-jail of the negro-trafficker—the abodes of the despised and persecuted colored man—the close walls of prisons. His narrative, like his own character, is calm, clear, simple; its single and manifest aim, to do good.

Although this volume is mainly devoted to the subject of emancipation, and to his intercourse with the religious Society of which he is a member, yet the friends of peace, of legal reform, and of republican institutions, will derive gratification from its perusal. The liberal spirit of Christian philanthropy breathes through it. The author's deep and settled detestation of our slavery, and of the hypocrisy which sustains and justifies it, does not render him blind to the beauty of the republican principle of popular control, nor repress in any degree his pleasure in recording its beneficent practical fruits in the free States.

The labors of Mr. Sturge in the cause of emancipation have given him the appellation of the "Howard of our days." The author of the popular "History of Slavery," page 600, thus notices his arduous personal investigations of the state of things in the West India Islands, under the apprenticeship system. "The idea originated with Joseph Sturge, of Birmingham, a member of that religious body, the FRIENDS, who have ever stood pre-eminent in noiseless but indefatigable exertions in the cause of the negro; and who seem to possess a more thorough practical understanding than is generally possessed by statesmen and politicians, of the axiom that the shortest communication between two given points, is a straight line. While others were speculating, and hoping that the worst reports from the West Indies might not be true, and that the evils would work their own cure, this generous and heroic philanthropist, resolved to go himself and ascertain the facts and the remedy required." On his return, Mr. Sturge, with his companion, Thomas Harvey, published a full account of their investigations into the working of the apprenticeship system; and his testimony before the Parliamentary Committee, occupied seven days. His disclosures sealed the fate of the apprenticeship system. Such a demonstration of popular sentiment was called forth against it, that the Colonies, one after another, felt themselves under the necessity of abandoning it for unconditional emancipation. It was a remark of Brougham, in the House of Lords, that the abolition of the apprenticeship was the work of one man, and that man was Joseph Sturge.

Mr. Sturge's benevolent labors have not been confined to the abolition of slavery. He is a prominent member of the Anti-corn Law League. He is an active advocate of the cause of universal peace. He has given all his influence to the cause of the oppressed and laboring classes of his own countrymen: and his name is at this moment, the rallying-word of millions, as the author and patron of the "Suffrage Declaration," which is now in circulation in all parts of the United Kingdom, pledging its signers to the great principle of universal suffrage—a full, fair and free representation of the people. It was reserved for the untitled Quaker of Birmingham to take the lead in the great and good work of uniting, for the first time, the middle and the working classes of his countrymen, and in so doing, to infuse hope and newness of life into the dark dwellings of the English peasant and artisan. The Editor of the London Non-Conformist, speaking of this movement of Mr. Sturge, says: "The Declaration is put forth by a man, who, perhaps, in a higher degree than any other individual, has the confidence of both the middle class and the working men. The former can trust to his prudence; the latter have faith in his sincerity."

Such is the man, who, prompted by his untiring benevolence, visited our shores during the past year. This volume is the brief record of his visit, and of the impressions produced upon his mind by our conflicting interests and institutions. It is now republished, in the belief that the opinions of its author will be received with candor and respect by all classes of our citizens, and that they are calculated to make a permanent and salutary impression, in favor of the great cause of universal freedom.

Boston, May, 1842.

PREFACE
TO THE ENGLISH EDITION.

In visiting the United States, the objects which preferred the chief claim to my attention were the universal abolition of slavery, and the promotion of permanent international peace. Deeply impressed with the conviction that the advancement of these is intimately connected with the progress of right views among professing Christians in that country, it was my desire not only to inform myself of the actual state of feeling and opinion among this important class, but if possible, to contribute my mite of encouragement and aid to those who are bearing the burden and heat of the day, in an arduous contest, on whose issue the alternative of a vast amount of human happiness or misery depends. This general outline of my motives included several specific, practical objects, which will be found detailed in the ensuing pages.

For obvious reasons, the abolition of slavery in the United States is the most prominent topic in my narrative; but I have freely interspersed observations on other subjects of interest and importance, as they came under consideration. Short notices are introduced of some of the prominent abolitionists of America; and, though sensible how imperfectly I have done justice to exertions, which, either in degree or kind, have scarcely a parallel in the annals of self-denying benevolence, I fear I shall occasionally have hurt the feelings of the individuals referred to, by what they may deem undeserved or unseasonable praise; yet I trust they will pardon the act for the sake of the motive, which is to introduce the English anti-slavery reader to a better acquaintance with his fellow laborers in the United States. My short stay, and the limited extent of my visit, prevented my becoming acquainted with many who are equally deserving of notice.

Less than twelve months have elapsed since I embarked on this "visit;" and though, with the help of steam by sea and land, an extensive journey may now be performed in a comparatively short time, yet, during this brief interval, my own engagements would have prevented my placing the following narrative so early before the public without assistance. It is right to state that a large portion of the work has been prepared for the press from a rough transcript of my journal, from my correspondence, and other documents, by the friend who accompanied me on a former journey to the West Indies, and who then compiled the account of our joint labors.

Nearly the whole of the narrative portion of this publication has been sent to America, to different individuals who were concerned in, or present at the transactions related, and has been returned to me with their verification of the facts; so that the reader has the strongest guaranty for their accuracy. The inferences and comments I am solely responsible for, and I leave them to rest on their own merits.

In undertaking this journey, I was careful not to shackle my individual liberty by appearing as the representative of any society, whether religious or benevolent; and, on the other hand, none of those friends, who kindly furnished me with letters of introduction, are in any way responsible for my proceedings in the United States, or for any thing which this volume contains.

In conclusion,—should these pages come under the notice of any, who, though well wishers to their species, are not yet identified with anti-slavery effort, I would entreat such to "come over and help us." If they are ambitious of a large and quick return for their outlay of money, of time, of labor,—for their painful sympathies and self-denying prayers,—where will they find a cause where help is more needed, or where it would be rewarded more surely and abundantly? Let them reflect on what has been effected, within a few short years, in the British West Indies, so recently numbered among "the dark places of the earth, full of the habitations of cruelty,"—but now scenes of light, gladness, and prosperity, temporal and spiritual. To show what remains to be accomplished for the universal abolition of slavery—a field in which the laborers are few indeed, in proportion to its extent—I may be allowed to quote the following comprehensive statement, from the preface to one of the most important volumes that ever issued from the press on the subject of slavery:[A]

A: "Proceedings of the London Anti-Slavery Convention."

"The extent of these giant evils may be gathered from a brief statement of facts. In the United States of America, the slave population is estimated to be 2,750,000; in Brazil, 2,500,000; in the Spanish Colonies, 600,000; in the French Colonies, 265,000; in the Dutch Colonies, 70,000; in the Danish and Swedish Colonies, 30,000; and in Texas, 25,000; besides those held in bondage by Great Britain, in the East Indies, and the British Settlements of Ceylon, Malacca, and Penang; and by France, Holland, and Portugal, in various parts of Asia and Africa; amounting in all to several millions more; and exclusive also of those held in bondage by the native powers of the East, and other parts of the world, of whose number it is impossible to form a correct estimate.

"To supply the slave-markets of the Western world, 120,000 native Africans are, on the most moderate calculation, annually required; whilst the slave-markets of the East require 50,000 more. In procuring these victims of a guilty traffic, to be devoted to the rigors of perpetual slavery, it is computed that 280,000 perish in addition, and under circumstances the most revolting and afflicting.

"But this is not all. In the Southern section of the United States, and in British India, a vast internal slave-trade is carried on, second only in horror and extent to that which has so long desolated and degraded Africa.

"These facts exhibit, also, the magnitude of the responsibility which devolves upon abolitionists; in view of it they may well be allowed to disclaim, as they do, all sectarian motive, all party feeling: 'Glory to God in the highest, on earth peace, good will to man,' is their aim: consistently with the blessed character of this gospel anthem, they recognize no means as allowable for them, in the prosecution of their holy enterprise, than those which are of a moral, religious, and pacific nature; in the diligent use of these means, and trusting in God, they cherish the hope that, under His blessing, they may be permitted to accomplish the great work to which they are devoted; and thus be made instrumental in advancing the sacred cause of freedom, and its attendant blessings, civilization and religion, throughout the earth."

J.S.

Edgbaston, near Birmingham, Second Month, 1st, 1842.

A VISIT, &c.

I embarked at Portsmouth, on board the British Queen steam packet, commanded by Captain Franklin, on the 10th of the 3d Month, (March,) 1841. During the first two or three days, the weather was unusually fine for the season of the year, and gave us the prospect of a quick and prosperous voyage. The passengers, about seventy in number, were of various nations, including English, French, German and American.

The very objectionable custom of supplying the passengers with intoxicating liquors without limit and without any additional charge, thus compelling the temperate or abstinent passenger to contribute to the expenses of the intemperate, was done away. Each individual paid for the wine and spirits he called for, a circumstance which greatly promoted sobriety in the ship; but I am sorry to say three or four, and these my own countrymen, were not unfrequently in a state of intoxication. On one occasion, after dinner, one of these addressed an intelligent black steward, who was waiting, by the contemptuous designation of "blackey;" the man replied to him in this manner:—"My name is Robert; when you want any thing from me please to address me by my name; there is no gentleman on board who would have addressed me as you have done; we are all the same flesh and blood; I did not make myself; God made me." This severe and public rebuke commended itself to every man's conscience, and my countryman obtained no sympathy even from the most prejudiced slaveholder on board. Several of my fellow passengers stood in this relation; and I found I could freely converse with a native American slaveholder not only with less risk of giving offence, but that he was more ready to admit the inherent evils of slavery than the Europeans who had become inured to the system by residence in the Southern States of America, or than the American merchants residing in the Northern cities, whose participation in the commerce of the Slave States had imbued them with pro-slavery views and feelings. One of them, a French merchant of New Orleans, went so far as to assure me, that in his opinion it would be as reasonable to class the negroes with monkeys, as to place them on an equality with the whites.

On the nights of the 14th and 15th the Aurora Borealis was very beautiful and vivid, which is said to be, in these latitudes, an indication of stormy weather. Accordingly on the 16th the weather became less favorable, with an increased swell in the sea, wind more ahead, and occasional squalls. On the night of the 18th we encountered one of the most awful hurricanes ever witnessed by the oldest sailor on board; and from this date to the 24th inst. we experienced a succession of storms of indescribable violence and severity, which at some intervals caused great and I believe very just alarm for the safety of the ship. The President steamer, coming in the opposite direction, is known to have encountered the same weather, and was doubtless lost, not having since been heard of. Our escape, under Divine Providence, must be attributed to the great strength of the vessel, which had been thoroughly repaired since her last voyage, and to the skill and indefatigable attention of the Captain. On the 25th the wind abated, and the greater number of the floats or propelling boards of the paddle wheels having been carried away, and our stock of coals very much reduced, the Captain decided to make for Halifax, Nova Scotia, where we arrived on the evening of the 30th. After a stay of twenty-four hours, for repairs and supplies, we again left for New York, where we arrived safely on the night of 4th Month, (April,) 3d.

The following day, being the first of the week, I landed about the time of the gathering of the different congregations, and inquired my way to the meeting of the orthodox section of the Society of Friends, and afterwards took up my abode at the Carlton Hotel. Here I met, for the first time, my friend J.G. Whittier, whom I had been anxious to associate with myself in my future movements, and who kindly consented to be my companion as far as his health would permit. The next morning, on returning to the vessel to get my luggage passed, a custom-house officer manifested his disapproval of my character and objects as an abolitionist, by giving me much unnecessary trouble, and by being the means of my paying duty on a small machine for copying letters for my own private use, and other articles which I believe are usually passed free. Ordinarily at this port, the luggage of respectable passengers is passed with little examination, on an assurance that it comprises no merchandise. This was almost the only instance of discourteous treatment I met with in the United States. We remained in New York from the 4th to the 10th of this month, which time was occupied in visiting different friends of the anti-slavery cause, and in receiving calls at our hotel.

I had much pleasure and satisfaction in my intercourse here with several individuals distinguished in the anti-slavery cause, some of whom I had met in 1837, during a short visit to New York on my way from the West Indies. Among these, ought particularly to be mentioned the brothers Arthur and Lewis Tappan. The former was elected president of the American Anti-Slavery Society on its formation, and remained at its head until the division which took place last year, when he became president of the American and Foreign Anti-Slavery Society. His name is not more a byeword of reproach, than a watchword of alarm throughout the slave states; and the slave holders have repeatedly set a high price upon his head by advertisement in the public papers. In the just estimation of the pro-slavery party, Arthur Tappan is abolition personified; and truly the cause needs not to be ashamed of its representative, for a more deservedly honored and estimable character it would be difficult to find. In personal deportment he is unobtrusive and silent; his sterling qualities are veiled by reserve, and are in themselves such as make the least show—clearness and judgment, prudence and great decision. He is the head of an extensive mercantile establishment, and the high estimation in which he is held by his fellow citizens, notwithstanding the unpopularity of his views on slavery, is the result of a long and undeviating career of public spirit and private integrity, and of an uninterrupted succession of acts of benevolence. During a series of years of commercial prosperity, his revenues were distributed with an unsparing hand through the various channels which promised benefit to his fellow creatures; and in this respect, his gifts, large and frequent though they were, were probably exceeded in usefulness by the influence of his example as a man and a Christian.

His brother Lewis, with the same noble and disinterested spirit in the application of his pecuniary resources, possesses the rare faculty of incessant labor; which, when combined, as in his case, with great intellectual and physical capacity, eminently qualifies for a leading position in society. He unites in a remarkable degree, the apparently incompatible qualities of versatility and concentration; and his admirable endowments have been applied in the service of the helpless and the oppressed with corresponding success. He has been from the beginning one of the most active members of the central Anti-Slavery Committee in New York, a body that has directed the aggressive operations against slavery, on a national scale, with a display of resources, and an untiring and resolute vigor, that have attracted the admiration of all, who, sympathizing in their object, have had the privilege of watching their proceedings. Of those who have impressed the likeness of their own character on these proceedings, Lewis Tappan is one of the chief; and he has shared with his brother the most virulent attacks from the pro-slavery party. Some years ago he had the ear of a negro sent to him by post, in an insulting anonymous letter. During the past year, though marked by a severe domestic affliction, in addition to his engagements as a merchant, in partnership with his brother Arthur, and his various public and private duties as a man and as a citizen, in the performance of which I believe he is punctual and exemplary, he has edited, almost without assistance, the American and Foreign Anti-Slavery Reporter, and has also been one of the most active members of a committee of benevolent individuals formed to watch over the interest of the Amistad captives. Besides superintending the maintenance, education, and other interests of these Africans, it was necessary to defend their cause against the whole power of the United States' Government, to raise funds for these objects, to interest foreign Governments in their welfare, and more than all, to keep them constantly before the public, not only for their own sakes, but that a portion of the sympathy and right feeling which was elicited in their favor might be reflected towards the native slave population of the country, whose claim to freedom rests upon the same ground of natural and indefeasible right. With what success this interesting cause has been prosecuted is well expressed in a single sentence by a valued transatlantic correspondent of mine, who, writing at the most critical period of the controversy, says:—"We, or rather Lewis Tappan, has made the whole nation look the captives in the face."

Joshua Leavitt, proprietor and editor of the New York Emancipator, a large weekly abolition newspaper, and secretary of the American and Foreign Anti-slavery Society, is another remarkable man, clear and sound in judgment, and efficient in action. He is justly regarded by American abolitionists as one of their ablest supporters.

La Roy Sunderland, member of the Executive Committee, and editor of "Zion's Watchman," a Methodist, religious, and anti-slavery newspaper, with his slight figure, dark intellectual face, and earnest manner, is pointed out to the anti-slavery visitor from the Old World as the most prominent advocate of emancipation among the Wesleyans. His boldness and faithfulness have combined against him the leading influences of his denomination, but notwithstanding he has been several times tried by ecclesiastical councils, they have always failed to substantiate the charges against him, and his vindication has been complete.

Theodore S. Wright, member of the committee, is a colored presbyterian preacher in this city—an amiable man, much and deservedly respected.

All the above mentioned individuals, who have from an early period been among the most zealous and laborious members of the anti-slavery committee, found themselves placed by the events of last year in the position of seceders from the American Anti-Slavery Society, though their opinions had undergone no change. They now belong to the American and Foreign Anti-Slavery Society, or as it is technically called the "new organization," a distinction which will be afterwards explained.

James M'Cune Smith, a young colored physician, I had known in England, where he studied for his profession, having been shut out of the colleges of his own country by the prejudice against his complexion. Notwithstanding this prejudice he is now practising, I understand, with success, and has fair prospects.

I had a pleasant interview with Isaac T. Hopper, whom also I had met in 1837. He belongs to the American Anti-Slavery Society, or "old organization," and has been a zealous and fearless abolitionist for half a century. He has been recently disowned by the "Hicksite Friends" for his connection with the newspaper called the "National Anti-Slavery Standard."

Early on the morning of the 10th, we left for Burlington by railroad, where we were most kindly received by our venerable friends Stephen Grellett and his wife. On the following day, we took tea with John Cox, residing about three miles from Burlington, at a place called Oxmead, where formerly that eminent minister of the Society of Friends, George Dillwin, resided. J.C. is now in his eighty-seventh year, enjoying a green and cheerful old age, and feeling all the interest of his youth in the anti-slavery cause. It was cheering and animating to witness the serene spirit of this venerable man, and deeply were we interested in the reminiscences of his youth. He well remembered John Woolman, whose former residence, Mount Holly, is within a few miles of Oxmead, and of whom he related various particulars characteristic of the simplicity, humanity, and great circumspection of his life and conversation. When John Woolman first brought the subject of slavery before the yearly meeting of the Society of Friends at Philadelphia, at a time when its members were deeply implicated both in slave-holding and in slave-dealing, he stood almost alone in his anti-slavery testimony, which he expressed in few and appropriate words. Some severe remarks were made by others in reply, on this and on successive similar occasions, when he introduced the subject, but such treatment provoked no rejoinder from John Woolman, who would quietly resume his seat and weep in silent submission.

He was not deterred by this discouraging reception from again and again bringing the subject before the next Yearly Meeting, and finally his unwearied efforts, always prosecuted in the "meekness of wisdom," resulted in the Society of Friends entirely wiping away the reproach of this abomination.

The great qualification of John Woolman for pleading the cause of the oppressed was the same which has been ascribed with equal truth and beauty to his contemporary and co-worker, Anthony Benezet: "a peculiar capacity for being profoundly sensible of their wrongs." The biographer of the latter has described another occurrence in the Philadelphia Yearly Meeting at a subsequent stage of this momentous controversy, which may prove an interesting counterpart to the foregoing relation.

"On one occasion during the annual convention of the Society at Philadelphia, when that body was engaged on the subject of slavery, as it related to its own members, some of whom had not wholly relinquished the practice of keeping negroes in bondage, a difference of sentiment arose as to the course which ought to be pursued. For a moment it appeared doubtful which opinion would preponderate. At this critical juncture Benezet left his seat, which was in an obscure part of the house, and presented himself weeping at an elevated door in the presence of the whole congregation, whom he thus addressed—'Ethiopia shall soon stretch out her hands unto God.' He said no more: under the solemn impression which succeeded this emphatic quotation, the proposed measure received the united sanction of the assembly."[A]

A: Life of Anthony Benezet, by Roberts Vaux.

Even the passing observer is aware how closely the Society of Friends is identified with the anti-slavery cause, and if such an one were to make this fact the subject of historical investigation, he would probably find it one of considerable interest.—He would learn that some years before the call of Thomas Clarkson in his early manhood, by a series of distinct and remarkable Providences, into this field of labor, this Society in America had been pervaded by a noiseless agitation on the subject of slavery, which resulted in the abandonment of the slave-trade, in the liberation of their slaves, and in the adoption of a rule of discipline excluding slaveholders from religious fellowship; so that for many years past, the sins in question have been not so much as to be named among them, or the possibility of their commission hinted at, by any one bearing the name and professing the principles of a "Friend." The change described, was effected, not by "pressure from without," but by the constraining influence of the love of Christ. The chief instruments in the hands of Divine Providence in bringing about so remarkable a reformation, were John Woolman and Anthony Benezet, of whom the former was the earlier in the field and broke up the fallow ground, under circumstances of the greatest discouragement, of which the instance above related is an example.

The life of this ever-memorable man was a pattern of apostolic Christianity—pure, patient, self-denying, meek. Love was the element he breathed. His heart not only yearned towards the oppressed of the human family, but his compassion extended to the brute creation, under whose sufferings in the service of man, to use his own expression, "creation at this day doth loudly groan." Though dependent on his own labor for a livelihood, he was careful in a most exemplary degree, "not to entangle himself with affairs of this life, that he might please Him who had called him to be a soldier;" and the reader of his life will find that this unworldly man took similar pains to avoid wealth, which others do to acquire it. Perhaps I may be excused for dwelling a moment on this theme, when I state that one of the latest public acts of my beloved and lamented father-in-law, James Cropper, was to cause John Woolman's auto-biography and writings to be re-edited, and a large and cheap edition to be struck off, which has appeared since his decease.[A] This work is well known to the Society of Friends, but should any other reader be induced by these desultory remarks to peruse it, he will find himself richly repaid. In the picturesque simplicity of its style, refined literary taste has found an inimitable charm,[B] but the spiritually minded reader will discover beauties of a far higher order.

A: A Journal of the Life, Gospel Labors, and Christian Experience, &c. &c. of John Woolman. Warrington, Thomas Hurst.

B: See Charles Lamb's Works.

Taking leave for the present of our venerable friends at Oxmead and Burlington, we proceeded on the 12th to Philadelphia, where we remained several days, at the Union Hotel. During this brief stay, we received visits from a large number of the friends of the anti-slavery cause, and made some calls in return. Among others, I had the pleasure of seeing James Forten, an aged and opulent man of color, whose long career has been marked by the display of capacity and energy of no common kind. The history of his life is interesting and instructive, affording a practical demonstration of the absurdity, as well as injustice, of that prejudice which would stamp the mark of intellectual inferiority on his complexion and race.

I returned to New York on the 15th, in company with several anti-slavery friends. One of these, Dr. Bartholomew Fussell, resided on the borders of the State of Maryland, and had afforded relief and aid to many negroes escaping from slavery. He had kept no account of the number thus assisted till last year, when there were thirty-four, being fewer he thought than the average of several years preceding. The same individual related some interesting particulars of the late Elisha Tyson, of Baltimore, an abolitionist of the old school, who had rescued many negroes from illegal bondage. Dr. Fussell was an eye witness of the following occurrence: A poor woman had been seized by the agents of Woolfolk, the notorious Maryland slave dealer, and was carried along the street in which Elisha Tyson lived. When they arrived opposite his house, she demanded to see "Father Tyson." A crowd collected about the party, and she so far moved their pity, that they insisted that her wish should be complied with. One of the men hereupon went to inform his employer, who galloped off, pistol in hand, and found Elisha Tyson standing at his own door. Woolfolk with an oath declared he would "send him to hell for interfering with his property." Elisha Tyson coolly exposed his breast, telling him that he dared not shoot, and that he (Woolfolk) "was in hell already, though he did not know it." An investigation followed; the poor woman was proved to be illegally detained, and was set at liberty.[A] It is generally allowed that so bold and uncompromising an advocate of the negroes' right as Elisha Tyson does not now remain in the slave States.

A: See Appendix D for a brief account of this ancient philanthropist.

As the old school of abolitionists has been mentioned, and will occasionally be referred to hereafter, the following historical statement of its rise and decline, and of the commencement of the present abolition movement, will probably be interesting to the anti-slavery reader on this side of the Atlantic. It is from the pen of my valued coadjutor John G. Whittier.

"The old Anti-Slavery Societies, established about the period of the American Revolution, and of which the late Judge Jay, Benjamin Franklin, Dr. Rush, and other distinguished statesmen were members, were composed mainly of the Religious Society of Friends. These societies were for many years active and energetic in their labors for the slave, and the free people of color; and little, if any, serious opposition was made to their exertions, which indeed seem to have been confined to the particular states in which they were located. They rendered essential service in promoting the gradual abolition of slavery in New York, Pennsylvania, and New Jersey.

"In 1819 commenced the discussion of what is now known as the 'Missouri Question.' The Anti-Slavery Societies took ground against the admission into the Union of the territory of Missouri as a slave state. They succeeded in arousing the public attention; and for two sessions the subject was warmly debated in Congress; the slave-holders finally carrying their point by working upon the fears of a few Northern members, by means of that old threat of dissolving the Union, which in the very outset of the Government had extorted from the Convention which framed the Constitution, a clause legalizing the Foreign Slave Trade for twenty years. The admission of Missouri as a slave State was a fatal concession to the South: the abolitionists became disheartened: their societies lingered on a few years longer, and nearly all were extinct previous to 1830. The colonization scheme had in the mean time, in despite of the earnest and almost unanimous rejection of it by the colored people, obtained a strong hold on the public mind, and had especially enlisted the favorable regard of some of the leading influences of the Society of Friends. Here and there over the country, might be found still a faithful laborer, like Elisha Tyson, of Baltimore, Thomas Shipley, of Philadelphia, and Moses Brown, of Rhode Island, holding up the good old testimony against prejudice and oppression in the midst of a wide spread apostacy. I should mention in this connection, Benjamin Lundy, a member of the Society of Friends, who devoted his whole life to the cause of freedom, travelling on foot thousands of miles, visiting every part of the slave States, Mexico and the Haytian Republic. About the year 1828, he visited Boston, and enlisted the sympathies of William Lloyd Garrison, then a very young man. Not long after, he was joined by the latter as an associate editor of The Genius of Universal Emancipation, an anti-slavery paper which he had established at Baltimore. After a residence in Baltimore of about six months, Garrison was thrown into prison for an alledged libel upon a northern slave-trader, whence he was liberated on the payment of his fine by the benevolent Arthur Tappan. Lundy continued his paper some time longer in Baltimore, where he was subjected to brutal personal violence from the notorious Woolfolk, the great slave-dealer of that city. He afterwards removed it to Philadelphia; and in 1834 made a tour through the South Western States and Texas, in which he encountered great dangers, and suffered extreme hardships from sickness and destitution. This journey was deemed by many an unprofitable and hazardous experiment, but it proved of great importance. He collected an immense amount of facts, developing beforehand the grand slave-holding conspiracy for revolutionizing Texas, and annexing it to the American Union, as a slave territory. These he published to the world on his return; and it has justly been said of him, by John Quincy Adams, that his exertions alone, under Providence, prevented the annexation of Texas to the United States. This bold and single-hearted pioneer died not long since in the State of Illinois, whither he repaired to take the place of the lamented Lovejoy, who was murdered by a mob in that State, in 1837.

"In 1831, Wm. Lloyd Garrison commenced, under great difficulties and discouragements, the publication of the Liberator, in Boston; and by the energy and earnestness of his appeals, roused the attention of many minds to the subject of slavery. Shortly after, a society was formed in Boston in favor of immediate emancipation. It consisted at first, if I remember right, of only twelve members. Previous to this, however, a society, embracing very similar principles, had been formed in Pennsylvania. In 1833, upwards of sixty delegates from several of the free States, met at Philadelphia; among them were Elizur Wright and Beriah Green, (who had been compelled to give up their Professorships in Western Reserve [Ohio] College, for their attachment to freedom,) Lewis Tappan, William Lloyd Garrison, Charles W. Denison, Arnold Buffum, Amos A. Phelps, and John G. Whittier. This Convention organized the American Anti-Slavery Society, proposing to make use of the common instrumentalities afforded by the Government and laws, for the abolition of slavery; at the same time, disavowing a design to use any other than peaceful and lawful measures."

In some of the Southern States there are professing Christian churches who permit slave-holding, but disallow the selling of slaves, except with their own consent. Dr. Fussell informed me how this fair-seeming rule of discipline was frequently evaded. First, a church member wishing to turn his negroes into cash, begins by making their yoke heavier, and their life a burden. Next they are thrown in the way of decoy slaves, belonging to Woolfolk, or some other dealer, who introduce themselves to the intended victims, for the purpose of expatiating on the privileges enjoyed by the slaves of so indulgent a master as theirs; and thus the poor unhappy dupes would be persuaded to go and petition to be sold, and so the rule of discipline, above cited, would be literally complied with. So great, generally, is the dread of being sold to the South, that my informant said the larger number of runaways escape when the price is high, as the danger of being sold is then most imminent. The greater proportion of those who thus emancipate themselves are domestics, owing to their superior intelligence, and their opportunities of ascertaining the best mode of escape.

On the 16th, I met the Executive Committee of the American and Foreign Anti-Slavery Society, at their office, No. 128 Fulton street, New York. The chair was taken by the President of the Society. The subject under discussion was the best time and place of holding another Convention of the friends of the anti-slavery cause from all parts of the world. After deliberate consideration, the following resolutions were unanimously adopted.

Resolved,—"That this Committee fully recognise and adopt the principles upon which the General Anti-Slavery Convention, held in London last year, was convened, and upon which it acted; that we feel greatly encouraged by the results of its meetings, and that we would strongly recommend our transatlantic friends to summon a second Convention in London, at about the same period in 1842; and that in the event of their doing so, we will use our best exertions to promote a good representation of American abolitionists on the occasion."

Resolved,—"That we deeply sympathize with the British and Foreign Anti-Slavery Society, in their noble efforts for the abolition of slavery and the slave-trade; that we assure them of our hearty co-operation in their well devised plans and energetic labors; and that so long as the slave question—in connection with the promotion of the rights of the free people of color—and nothing else, is admitted to a place in anti-slavery meetings, they may expect the co-operation of all true-hearted abolitionists throughout the world, in carrying forward the great objects of our associations to a glorious consummation."

I returned to Philadelphia on the afternoon of the 17th, but before leaving my hotel in New York, informed one of the proprietors that I intended being in that city on the week of the anniversaries of the Religious and Benevolent Institutions; that as I took a lively interest in the anti-slavery question, it was probable some of my friends among the people of color would call upon me, and that if he, or any of his southern customers objected to this, I would go elsewhere; he answered that he had no objection, and even intimated his belief that public opinion was undergoing a favorable change in reference to this prejudice. Although I did not arrive in Philadelphia till near midnight, I found my kind friends, Samuel Webb and wife waiting to receive me, whose hospitable dwelling I made my home, whenever I afterwards lodged in this city. Samuel Webb is one of the few on whose shoulders the burden of the anti-slavery cause mainly rests in Philadelphia. He is a practical man, conversant with business, thoroughly acquainted with the anti-slavery subject in all its phases, and a strenuous advocate for bringing political influence to bear upon the question. He was one of the most active in promoting the erection of Pennsylvania Hall, a beautiful edifice designed to be open to the use of the anti-slavery societies; which was no sooner so appropriated than it was destroyed by a mob in the 5th Month, (May,) 1838. The fire-scathed ruin of this building yet stands a conspicuous token that the principles of true liberty, though loudly vaunted, are neither understood nor enjoyed in this Capital of a free republic. If freedom of thought, of speech, of the press, and the right of petition had been realities in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Hall would have been yet standing. Samuel Webb has since taken the chief labor of an appeal to the legal tribunals for compensation for this infamous destruction of property, and a jury have at length awarded damages, though to a very inadequate amount.

During the ensuing week I was chiefly occupied in attending the Philadelphia Friends' Yearly Meeting. In the intervals of the sittings, I had many opportunities of meeting "Friends" from whom I received much kindness, and many more invitations than it was possible for me to accept.

There are many "Friends" of this city who take a deep interest in the anti-slavery cause; among whom I may mention Thomas Wistar, an aged and influential individual, who, like his venerable contemporary, John Cox, has been an abolitionist from his youth up, and a member of the original society; and one who has been accustomed to bear his testimony on behalf of the oppressed, on suitable occasions, in the presence of his brethren in religious fellowship, and whose communications of this kind, are always weighty, solemn, and impressive. Dr. Caspar Wistar, son of Thomas Wistar, is a warm hearted, active abolitionist, a liberal contributor of his pecuniary means, and deeply solicitous that "Friends" in the United States should be induced to engage earnestly in the cause of emancipation. Edward Needles, a kind and open hearted man, a native of Maryland, and President of the "old Abolition Society," is a devoted friend to the anti-slavery cause.

The subject of slavery was introduced in the Yearly Meeting by the reading of certain minutes of the Meeting for Sufferings, from which it appeared that meeting, (the executive Committee of the Society,) had taken up the question of the foreign slave-trade, but had not yet entertained the consideration of the slavery and internal slave-trade of their own country. On the subject of the latter, a very faithful minute from the Meeting for Sufferings in London was received and read.

As this term will sometimes occur in the ensuing pages, it may be necessary to state for the information of the general reader, that the Society of Friends is distributed into various "Yearly Meetings," of which there are several on the Continent of North America. Within the compass of each an annual assembly is held to regulate all the affairs and discipline of that section of the body. There is also in each Yearly Meeting a permanent committee called the "Meeting for Sufferings" for administering the affairs of the Societies, in the intervals of its annual assemblies. The technical name of this committee is an expressive memorial of those times of trial, when its chief employment was to record "sufferings" and persecutions, and to afford such succor and alleviation as circumstances admitted.

An address from the Yearly Meeting of London on slavery was also read,[A] which was followed by observations from several, which evinced great exercise of mind on the subject. Three thousand copies of it were ordered to be printed for distribution among Friends of Pennsylvania, and the whole subject of slavery and the slave-trade was referred to their Meeting for Sufferings, with a recommendation that an account should be drawn up and printed of the former abolition of slavery within the limits of the Society of Friends. I need hardly state how much these measures were in unison with my own feelings, and that I heartily rejoiced at signs of an awakening zeal in my American brethren. Let them but ask for the ancient ways, and follow in the footsteps of their predecessors, whose memorials are their precious inheritance, and once more shall they be made a blessing to mankind, and messengers of mercy and deliverance to the oppressed.[B]

A: See Appendix A.

B: See Appendix B.

It will be interesting to some of my English readers to be informed, that both the sale and use of spirituous liquors come within the scope of discipline among "Friends" in America. In this Yearly Meeting it is required that the subordinate meetings should report the number of their members, who continue to sell, use, or give ardent spirits. If I remember rightly the number of cases reported was fifty-nine. At present the moderate use of spirits subjects to admonition, but it was discussed at this time whether the rule of discipline should not be rendered more stringent, and this practice made a disownable offence. Finally it was resolved to make no alteration at present, but to recommend the local meetings of Friends to use further labor in the line of reproof and persuasion. I am informed that some of the American Yearly Meetings of Friends go still farther on this subject. It will scarcely be questioned that public sentiment both in the United States, and in England, condemns even the moderate use of ardent spirits as a beverage, though some difference of opinion will exist as to the propriety of a religious society making it a cause of disownment or exclusion. In this case of the Philadelphia Meeting, however, it may be remarked, that in a community of many thousand members, the practice may be regarded as almost eradicated by the milder methods of persuasion. It is a fact deserving of notice, that the same worthies of the last century, Woolman, Benezet, and others, who raised the standard of anti-slavery testimony, also by the same process of independent thinking, and single-minded, unhesitating obedience to convictions of duty, anticipated the verdict of public opinion on this subject. Woolman found that even the most moderate use of ardent spirits, was unfavorable to that calm religious meditation, which was the habit of his mind, and has left his views on record in various characteristic passages. I shall also, I trust, be excused for introducing the following anecdote of two of his contemporaries.

"Jacob Lindley, to adopt his own designation of himself was a 'stripling' when he attended a Yearly Meeting of Friends held at Philadelphia; his mind had been for some time much afflicted with an observation of the pernicious effects of spirituous liquors, and he was anxious that the religious society to which he belonged, should cease to use, and prevent any of its members from being instrumental in manufacturing or vending them. He therefore rose and developed his feelings to the assembly, in the energetic and pathetic manner for which he was peculiarly remarkable. When the meeting adjourned, he observed a stranger pressing through the crowd towards him, who took him by the hand in the most affectionate manner, and said, 'My dear young friend, I was very glad to hear thy voice on the subject of spirituous liquors; I have much unity with thy concern, and hope that no discouragement may have been received from its not being farther noticed; and now I want thee to go home, and take dinner with me, having something farther to say to thee on the subject.' Lindley accepted the invitation, and after they had dined, Benezet introduced his young guest into a little room used as a study, where he produced a manuscript work on the subject of spirituous liquors, in an unfinished state; he opened the book and laid it on a table before them, saying, 'This is a treatise which I have been for some time engaged in writing, on the subject of thy concern in meeting to-day; and now if thou hast a mind to sit down, and write a paragraph or two, I will embody it in the work, and have it published.'"[A]

A: Life of Anthony Benezet, p. 107-109.

These eminent men, John Woolman and Anthony Benezet, had much in common; yet their characters were as unlike as opposite temperaments, and as alike as similarity of views, could make them. So marked was their coincidence of sentiment in opposition to the prevailing opinions and practices of that day, that it might be surmised one was a disciple of the other, yet there is no reason to suppose such was the case. Each had the single eye; both learned in the same school, and sat at the feet of the same Divine Master. It is an interesting fact that on the subject last noticed, their labors should have been comparatively fruitless, and for a long interval almost forgotten, while their views on slavery rapidly spread, and produced extensive and permanent results. Does not this illustrate the lesson long ago taught by a great master of wisdom: "In the morning sow thy seed, and in the evening withhold not thy hand; for thou knowest not whether shall prosper, either this or that, or whether they shall both be alike good." May we not infer from this, that even those labors, rightly undertaken, which do not immediately prosper, are yet owned and accepted in the Divine sight?

To return from this digression to our attendance of the Yearly Meeting in Philadelphia: one interesting part of the business was the annual report on education; from which it appeared, that the whole number of children, of an age for education, within the compass of this Yearly Meeting, was eighteen hundred and fourteen, and of these ninety-eight were temporarily absent, though most of them had been receiving instruction during part of the year.

I was also deeply interested in the statements made relative to the wicked expatriation of the Indians living within this Yearly Meeting's limits, by the United States Government, from lands which had been secured to them by treaty in the most solemn manner, to the Western wilderness, under plea of a fraudulently obtained cession of their lands, by a few of their number. What greatly aggravates the case is the fact, that these Indians were making rapid progress in civilization, and from a nation of hunters had generally become an agricultural people. Their whole history is a reproach and blot on the American Government, and shews either that public and private virtue amongst the people is at a low ebb, or that "the wicked bear rule." On behalf of this injured people, "Friends" appear to have made strenuous efforts, but have failed in producing any decidedly favorable impression on the Government. The report on this subject, embodied a very affecting letter from the chiefs of this tribe, describing their grief and distress at the prospect of a cruel removal from the homes of their ancestors.[A]

A: See Appendix C.

During this week, my valued friends, John and Maria Candler, arrived from Hayti, after a stay of many months in Jamaica. At the close of the Yearly Meeting, a meeting was held, and attended by about three hundred "Friends," to whom John Candler gave much interesting information, detailing the results of emancipation in that Island, from his own extensive observations and inquiries. At the request of some individuals present I added a few observations at the close, on the principles and objects of the British and Foreign Anti-Slavery Society.

I visited at this time the celebrated Schuylkill waterworks, which are beautifully situated on the river of that name. The water is raised to large reservoirs, at a higher level than the tops of the houses, by pumps worked by the current of the river. The supply not only suffices for the domestic use of the inhabitants, but is abundant for every public purpose of ornament or utility. My kind host, Samuel Webb, who accompanied me, pointed out a plot of land, presented by William Penn to a friend, to enable him to keep a cow, which is now worth many hundred thousand dollars for building purposes. He also showed me a mansion, the late proprietor of which had received a large accession of wealth from the quantities of plate which had been shipped to him in coffee barrels from St. Domingo, on the eve of the revolution in that Island, and whose owners are supposed to have subsequently perished, as they never appeared, with one solitary exception, to claim their property.

It will be necessary, in order to make certain passages of the succeeding narrative intelligible to my readers in this country, that some account should be given of the schism which has recently taken place in the once united and compact organizations of the abolitionists.

The American Anti-Slavery Society, whose origin has been already described, acted with great unity and efficiency for several years; auxiliaries were formed in all the free States; it scattered its publications over the land like the leaves of autumn, and at times had thirty or forty lecturers in the field. It kept a steady and vigilant eye upon the movements of the pro-slavery party, and wherever a vulnerable point was discovered, it directed its attacks. In its executive committee were such men as Judge Jay, Arthur and Lewis Tappan, La Roy Sunderland, Simeon S. Jocelyn, (the early laborer on behalf of the free colored people,) Joshua Leavitt, Henry B. Stanton, and the late Dr. Follen, a German political refugee, equally distinguished for his literary attainments and his love of liberty.

Until the last three or four years, entire union of purpose and concert of action existed among the American abolitionists. This harmony was first disturbed by the course pursued in the Boston Liberator. The editor of that paper, William Lloyd Garrison, whose early anti-slavery career has already been alluded to, and who was deservedly honored by the great body of the abolitionists, for his sufferings in their cause, and for his triumphant exposure of the oppressive tendencies of the colonization scheme, had always refused to share with any society or committee, the editorial responsibility of his journal. About the time referred to, several pieces were inserted in the Liberator, questioning the generally received opinions on the first day of the week. These were followed by others on other subjects, and he continued to keep his readers apprised of the new views of ethics and theology, which from time to time were presented to his own mind. His paper was not the special organ of any anti-slavery society, yet it was regarded, by general consent of the friends and enemies of the cause, as the organ of the anti-slavery movement. The discussion in its columns of new and startling doctrines, on subjects unconnected with slavery, occasioned many of the former much uneasiness and embarrassment, while it furnished the latter with new excuses for their enmity, and with the pretence that under cover of abolition, lurked a design of assailing institutions and opinions justly held in regard throughout the Christian world.

In the summer of 1837, Sarah and Angelina Grimke visited New England for the purpose of advocating the cause of the slave, with whose condition they were well acquainted, being natives of South Carolina, and having been themselves at one time implicated in the system. Their original intention was to confine their public labors to audiences of their own sex, but they finally addressed promiscuous assemblies. Their intimate knowledge of the true character of slavery; their zeal, devotion, and gifts as speakers, produced a deep impression, wherever they went. They met with considerable opposition from colonizationists, and also from a portion of the New England clergy, on the ground of the impropriety of their publicly addressing mixed audiences. This called forth in the Liberator, which at that time, I understand, was under the patronage, though I believe not under the control of the Massachusetts Anti-Slavery Society, a discussion of the abstract question of the entire equality of the rights and duties of the two sexes. Here was a new element of discord. In 1838, at the annual New England convention of abolitionists, a woman was for the first time placed on committees with men, an innovation upon the general custom of the community, which excited much dissatisfaction in the minds of many.

About this time the rightfulness of civil and church government began to be called in question, through the columns of the Liberator, by its editor and correspondents. These opinions were concurrently advocated with the doctrine of non-resistance. Those who hold these opinions, while they deny that civil and ecclesiastical government are of divine authority, are yet passively submissive to the authority of the former, though they abstain from exercising the political rights of citizenship. There were not wanting those, among the opponents of abolition, to charge the anti-slavery body at large with maintaining these views, and in consequence serious embarrassments were thrown in the way of a successful prosecution of the cause. The executive committee of the Society at New York were placed in a difficult position, but as far as I am able to judge, they endeavored to hold on the steady tenor of their way, without, on the one hand, countenancing the introduction of extraneous matters upon the anti-slavery platform; or, on the other hand, yielding to the clamor of the pro-slavery party, whether in church or state.

In subsequent anti-slavery meetings in Boston, New York, and elsewhere, it became manifest that there was a radical difference of opinion on the subject of political action; the non-resistant and no-government influence, operating decidedly against the employment of the elective franchise in the anti-slavery cause; and the agitation of this question, as well as that of the rights of women, in their meetings, gave to them a discordant and party character, painfully contrasting with the previous peaceful and harmonious action of the societies. That some of both parties began to overlook the great subject of the slaves' emancipation, in zealous advocacy of, or opposition to, these new measures, I cannot well doubt, judging from the testimony of those, who, not fully sympathizing with either, endeavored to bring all back to the single object of the anti-slavery association. In addition to these intestine troubles, the pro-slavery party made strenuous exertions to fasten upon the society the responsibility of the opinions and proceedings of its non-resistant and no-government members. Under these circumstances it is easy to understand the interruption, for a season, of the unity of feeling and action which had previously characterized the assemblies of the abolitionists. The actual separation in the societies took place in the Spring of 1840. The members of the executive committee at New York, with one exception, seceded and became members of the committee of the "new organization," under the name of the "American and Foreign Anti-Slavery Society." There are, therefore, now two central or national anti-slavery societies; the "old organization," retaining the designation of the "American Anti-Slavery Society." The State Societies have, for the most part, taken up a position of neutrality, or independence of both. It is important to add that the division took place on the "women's rights" question, and that this is the only one of the controverted points which the American Anti-Slavery Society has officially affirmed; and it is argued, on behalf of their view of this question, that since, in the original "constitution" of the society, the term, describing its members, officers, et cet., is "persons," that women are plainly invested with the same eligibility to appointments, and the same right to vote and act as the other sex. I need not say how this "constitutional" argument is met on the other side. The other new views are held by comparatively few persons, and neither anti-slavery society in America is responsible for them. In conclusion, I rejoice to be able to add, that the separation, in its effects, appears to have been a healing measure; a better and kinder feeling is beginning to pervade all classes of American abolitionists; the day of mutual crimination seems to be passing away, and there is strong reason to hope that the action of the respective societies will henceforward harmoniously tend to the same object. That such may be the result is my sincere desire. It is proper in this connection to state that a considerable number of active and prominent abolitionists do not entirely sympathize with either division of the anti-slavery society; and there are comparatively few who make their views, for or against the question on which the division took place, a matter of conscience.

I have now given a brief, and I trust an impartial account of the origin of these dissensions. Some may possibly regard the views and proceedings above referred to, as the natural growth of abolitionism, but as well might the divisions among the early reformers be charged upon the doctrines of the Reformation, or the "thirty years' war" upon the preaching of Luther.

On the evening of the 14th instant, we met at a social party the leading abolitionists of Philadelphia of the "old organization." There were present all but one of the delegates from Pennsylvania to the London Convention. I availed myself of the opportunity of briefly and distinctly stating the unanimous conclusion of the London Anti-Slavery Committee, in which I entirely concurred, on the points at issue. I observed, in substance, that in the struggle for the liberation of the slaves in the British Colonies, one great source of our moral strength was, the singleness of our object, and our not allowing any other subject, however important or unexceptionable, to be mixed up with it; that though the aid of our female coadjutors had been of vital importance to the success of the anti-slavery enterprize, yet that their exertions had been uniformly directed by separate committees of their own sex, and that the abolitionists of Europe had no doubt that their united influence was most powerful in this mode of action: that the London Committee being convinced that no female delegate had crossed the Atlantic, under the belief that the "call" or invitation was intended to include women, felt themselves called upon, without in the slightest degree wishing to interfere with private opinion on this, or any other subject, to withhold their assent to the reception of such delegates, as members of the Convention, and that their decision, when appealed against, had been ratified in the Convention itself, by an overwhelming majority, after a protracted discussion: finally, that those whose views I represented, could not be parties to the introduction, in any future convention, of this or any other question, which we deemed foreign to our cause, and therefore that for those with whom it was a point of conscience to carry out what they deemed "women's rights," I saw no alternative but a separate organization, in which I wished that their efforts on behalf of the oppressed colored race, might be crowned with the largest measure of success. I observed, in conclusion, that my object was simply to state the decision of those with whom I acted in Great Britain, and that I must decline discussion, being fully convinced that it was better that the now separate societies should aim at the common object, in a spirit of kind and friendly co-operation, each in its own sphere, rather than that they should waste their energies in mutual contentions, and in the unprofitable discussion of topics not legitimately belonging to the great question of the abolition of slavery.

Although I had to address a company almost unanimously opposed on these points to myself, my communication was received in a kind and friendly spirit, and I was courteously informed that it would be taken into consideration at the next meeting of the Committee.

My friend, Daniel Neall, at whose house this interview took place, is a venerable looking man, a native of Delaware, and son-in-law of the excellent Warner Mifflin. He has been an abolitionist from his boyhood. Two years ago, he was dragged from the house of a friend in Delaware, and tarred and feathered, and otherwise mal-treated by a mob of slave-holders and their abettors; he mildly told those near him that if they would call at his house at Philadelphia, he would treat them in a very different manner. He was president of the Pennsylvania Hall Association, and in the terrible mobs of 1838, manifested a calm, quiet courage, as rare as it is commendable.

I remained in Philadelphia until the morning of the 28th, and during this interval paid many visits, and obtained much information, on the state of the anti-slavery feeling in this city, and more particularly amongst the members of the religious community to which I belong. On one occasion an esteemed individual kindly invited a number of "Friends" to meet me at his house, including some who object to uniting in anti-slavery effort with those of other denominations. I was introduced by the reading of a certificate of membership from the monthly meeting to which I belong, and also a document from a number of "Friends" in England, well known to those in America, commending me, and the cause in which I was engaged, to their kind and favorable consideration.

I then briefly related the leading objects of my visit to America, and that it was my anxious wish the members of my own religious society in this land, could see it their place to take the same active and prominent part in the anti-slavery cause, as their brethren in England had done, especially as the principles on which the British and Foreign and the American and Foreign Societies were founded, were entirely in accordance with the views of the Society of Friends. Those who spoke in reply mostly vindicated the course pursued in the United States. From this interview, as well as from others of a more private nature, with leading "Friends," I came to the conclusion, that a number of these would continue, by their influence and advice, to oppose their fellow members joining anti-slavery societies, though it is not probable that any disciplinary proceedings would be taken against such who might act in opposition to this counsel, so long as the recognized principles of the Society were not compromised. On this, to me, painfully interesting subject, I could dwell at length, but I will simply remark that, while it is evident that anti-slavery feeling is at too low an ebb among "Friends" here, yet doubtless, many of those who thus excuse themselves from active and effective service in the cause, still deeply sympathize with their oppressed fellow-men, and are not quite at ease in view of the apathy and inaction of the body to which they belong.

On the 28th we arrived at Baltimore; during a stay of two or three days, we found several persons who were friendly to our cause. There are computed to be five thousand slaves in this city, but of course slavery does not obtrude itself on the casual observer. Here, as in other countries, he who would see it as it is, must view it on the plantations.

The free people of color in Baltimore, are alive to the importance of education. One individual told us, that in distributing about two hundred and fifty religious books, which had been sent to be gratuitously supplied to the poor of this class, he found only five or six families, in which the children were not learning to read and write.

While in Baltimore, the inquiries I made respecting Elisha Tyson, fully confirmed the impression I have attempted to convey of his extraordinary character; perhaps no one has so good a claim to be considered the Granville Sharp of North America, and I have inserted in another place some particulars drawn from his biography, which will be found full of interest.[A] I am glad also to state, that if there is no one citizen of Baltimore on whom his mantle rests, there are yet some who are active in preventing the illegal detention of negroes, and of bringing such cases before the proper tribunal. One of these related the following case of recent occurrence. A woman, who was the wife of a free man, and the mother of four children, and who had long believed herself legally free, was claimed by the heir of her former master. The case was tried, and his right of property in her and her children affirmed. He then sold the family to a slave dealer for a thousand dollars; of whom the husband of the woman re-purchased them, (his own wife and children,) for eleven hundred dollars, to repay which he bound himself to labor for the person from whom it was borrowed, for twelve years. Yet this is but a mitigated instance of oppression in this Christian country.

A: See Appendix D.

The religious public of this city appear to be doing nothing collectively, to abolish or ameliorate slavery, and with the exception of "Friends," and the body who have lately seceded from them, I fear that all are more or less implicated in its actual guilt. I was informed not long since, even the Roman Catholics, who are more free from the contamination than many other religious bodies, had, in some part of the State, sold several of their own church members, and applied the proceeds to the erection of a place of worship. We called upon the Roman Catholic Bishop to inquire into the truth of this, but he was from home. When at Philadelphia afterwards, in conversation with a priest, I gave the particulars, and said I should be glad to be furnished with the means of contradicting it. I have not heard from him since.

I am informed that the Yearly Meeting of "Friends" has advised its members not to unite with the anti-slavery societies, and has latterly discontinued petitioning the legislature for the abolition of the internal slave trade, and the amelioration of the slave code; such is the prevailing influence of a pro-slavery atmosphere. The code in question has of late years been rendered more severe, and the legal emancipation of slaves more difficult; yet I was pleased to learn that public opinion has in this respect counteracted legislative tyranny; that slavery has in fact become milder, and the number of manumissions has not lessened.

The mischievous influence of the Colonization Society is very extensive among professing Christians in Baltimore, and is paramount in the legislature of the State.

The American slave trade is carried on in the most open manner in this city. We paid a visit to the establishment of an extensive slave dealer, a large new building in one of the principal streets. The proprietor received us with great courtesy, and permitted us to inspect the premises. Cleanliness and order were every where visible, and, might we judge from the specimens of food shewn us, the animal wants of the slaves are not neglected. There were only five or six negroes in stock, but the proprietor told us he had sometimes three or four hundred there, and had shipped off a cargo to New Orleans a few days before. That city is the market where the highest price is generally obtained for them. The premises are strongly secured with bolts and bars, and the rooms in which the negroes are confined, surround an open court yard, where they are permitted to take the air. We were accompanied and kindly introduced by an individual who has often been engaged in preventing negroes from being illegally enslaved; and the proprietor of the establishment expressed his approval of his efforts, and that when such cases come before himself in the way of trade, he was accustomed to send them to our friend for investigation; he added that slaves would often come to him, and ask him to purchase them, and that he was the means of transferring them from worse masters to better; that he never parted families, though of course he could not control their fate, either before they came into his hands, or after they left him. He said he frequently left his concerns for weeks together, under the care of his head slave, whose wife he had made free, and promised the same boon to him, if he conducted himself well a few years longer. I thought it right to intimate my view of the nature of slavery and the slave trade, and that I deemed it wholly inconsistent with the plain precept "do unto others as ye would they should do unto you." This he did not attempt to controvert, yet he stated in extenuation, that the law permitted the trade in slaves, though he should be as willing as any one to have the system abolished, if the State would grant them compensation for their property. He farther said, that he was born in a slave State, that his mother had been for fifty years a member of the Wesleyan body, and that though he had not joined a Christian church himself, he had never sworn an oath, nor committed an immoral act in his life. He also shewed, I think, convincingly, that dealing in slaves was not worse than slave holding. On leaving the premises, we found the door of his office had been locked upon us during this conference. I subsequently learned that this person, though living in considerable style, was not generally received in respectable society, and that a lady whom he had lately married, was shunned by her former acquaintance. Such is the testimony of the slave-holders of Baltimore against slave dealing, by which they condemn themselves in the sight of God and man, and add the guilt of hypocrisy to their own sin. Some time afterwards I addressed the following letter to this individual, which was published in many of the American papers:

"To HOPE H. SLAUGHTER, Slave Trader, Baltimore:

"Since thou courteously allowed me, in company with my friend, J.G. Whittier, to visit thy slave establishment in the city of Baltimore, some weeks since, I have often felt a desire to address a few lines to thee. I need not, perhaps, say that my feelings were painfully exercised in looking over thy buildings, fitted up with bolts and bars, for the reception of human beings for sale. A sense of the misery and suffering of the unfortunate slaves, who have been from time to time confined there—of their separation from home and kindred—and of the dreary prospect before them of a life of unrequited toil in the South and South West—rested heavily upon me. I could there realize the true nature of the system of slavery. I was in a market-house for human flesh, where humanity is degraded to a level with the brute; and where children of our common Father in Heaven, and for whom our blessed Redeemer offered up the atoning sacrifice of his blood, were bargained for and sold like beasts that perish. And when I regarded thee as the merchant in this dreadful traffic, and heard thee offer remarks, which might in some degree be considered as an apology for thy business, calling our attention to the cleanly state of the apartments, the wholesome provisions, et cet.; and especially when I heard thee declare that thou hadst been educated by a pious mother—that thou wast never addicted to swearing or other immoralities—and that thy business was a legalized one—that thou didst nothing contrary to law—and that, while in thy possession, the poor creatures were treated kindly—that families were not separated,[A] et cet.,—I was glad to perceive some evidence that the nature of thy employment had not extinguished the voice of conscience within thee. In thy sentiments, and in the manner of their utterance, I thought I could see that truth had not left itself without a witness in thy breast, and that a sense of the wrongfulness of thy occupation still disturbed thee.

A: "The latter remark, of course, applies only to the time they remained with thee. For, on the day we visited thy establishment, a friend with whom I was dining informed me, that a few days before a woman and child had been sold to thee, whose husband and father was a free man, who, in his distress, had been offering to bind himself for a term of years, in order to raise the sum (I think $800) demanded for them; but, as he had been unable to do so, my friend had no doubt they had been sent off with the very lot of slaves, which, we were told by thyself had just been forwarded to New Orleans from thy prison. Who is most guilty in this atrocious transaction—the slave owner, who sold thee the woman and child at Baltimore—thou, the transporter of them for ever from their husband and parent—the purchasers of the mother and child at New Orleans, where they may be for ever separated from each other—or the citizen who, by his vote and influence, creates and upholds enactments which legalize this monstrous system, is known only to Him before whom the secrets of all hearts are unfolded."

"To thy remark that thy business was necessary to the system of slavery, and an essential part of it—and if slave-holding were to be justified at all, the slave-trade must be also—I certainly can offer no valid objection; for I have never been able to discover any moral difference between the planter of Virginia and the slave dealer of Baltimore, Richmond, and Washington. Each has his part to act in the system, and each is necessary to the other. And if the matter were not, in all its bearings, painfully serious, it would be amusing to witness the absurd contempt with which the slave owner of Maryland or Virginia professes to look upon the trader, whose purchase of his surplus slaves alone enables him to retain the residue in his possession; for it seems very evident that the only profitable part of the system in those States, at the present time, is the sale of the annual increase of the slaves.

"In passing from thy premises, we looked in upon the Triennial Convention of the Baptists of the United States, then in session in the city of Baltimore, where I found slave-holding ministers of high rank in the church, urging successfully the exclusion from the Missionary Board of that Society, of all those who, in principle and practice, were known to be decided abolitionists; and the results of their efforts satisfied me that the darkest picture of slavery is not to be found in the jail of the slave-trader, but rather in a convocation of professed ministers of the Gospel of Christ, expelling from the Board of a Society formed to enlighten the heathen of other nations, all who consistently labor for the overthrow of a system which denies a knowledge of the Holy Scriptures to near three millions of heathen at home!

"But allow me, in a spirit, as I trust, of Christian kindness, to entreat thee not to seek excuses for thy own course in the evil conduct of others. Thou hast already reached the middle period of life—the future is uncertain. By thy hopes of peace here and hereafter, let me urge thee to abandon this occupation. It is not necessary to argue its intrinsic wickedness, for thou knowest it already. I would therefore beseech thee to listen to that voice which, I am persuaded, sometimes urges thee to 'put away the evil of thy doings,' to 'do justice and love mercy,' and thus cease to draw upon thyself the curse which fell upon those merchants of Tyre, who 'traded in the persons of men.' That these warnings of conscience may not longer be neglected on thy part, is the sincere wish of one who, while he abhors thy occupation, feels nothing but kindness and good will towards thyself.

"Thy friend,

"JOSEPH STURGE.

"New York, 6th Month 30th, 1841."

The Baptist Convention alluded to in the foregoing letter was one whose proceedings I regarded with considerable interest, for it had been generally understood that the ministers delegated from the South, as well as some of those from the Northern States, intended to exclude abolitionists from every office on the missionary board, and especially to remove my friend, Elon Galusha, a distinguished Baptist minister, from the station of vice-president, for the offence of attending the London Anti-Slavery Convention, and more particularly for supporting the following resolutions of that assembly:

"1. That it is the deliberate and deeply-rooted conviction of this Convention, which it thus publicly and solemnly expresses to the world, that slavery, in whatever form, or in whatever country it exists, is contrary to the eternal and immutable principles of justice, and the spirit and precepts of Christianity; and is, therefore a sin against God, which acquires additional enormity when committed by nations professedly Christian, and in an age when the subject has been so generally discussed, and its criminality so thoroughly exposed.

"2. That this Convention cannot but deeply deplore the fact, that the continuance and prevalence of slavery are to be attributed in a great degree to the countenance afforded by many Christian churches, especially in the Western world, which have not only withheld that public and emphatic testimony against the crime which it deserves, but have retained in their communion, without censure, those by whom it is notoriously perpetrated.

"3. That this Convention, while it disclaims the intention or desire of dictating to Christian communities the terms of their fellowship, respectfully submits that it is their incumbent duty to separate from their communion all those persons who, after they have been faithfully warned in the spirit of the gospel, continue in the sin of enslaving their fellow-creatures, or holding them in slavery—a sin, by the commission of which, with whatever mitigating circumstances it may be attended in their own particular instance, they give the support of their example to the whole system of compulsory servitude, and the unutterable horrors of the slave trade.

"4. That it be recommended to the Committee of the British and Foreign Anti-Slavery Society, in the name of this Convention, to furnish copies of the above resolutions to the ecclesiastical authorities of the various Christian churches throughout the world."

On entering the meeting, we found the question was already before them, previous to balloting for the officers for the ensuing three years. The pro-slavery party were anxious to prevent all discussion, but some on the other side proposed questions which compelled their notice. Among the rest it was plainly asked, if the southern delegates did not come pledged against the re-election of Elon Galusha. This was denied, but certain resolutions which had appeared in the public papers were appealed to in proof of the fact. The inquiry becoming more searching, an expedient was resorted to, which, though quite novel to me, was, I am told, not unfrequently adopted when discussions assume a shape not quite satisfactory to the controlling powers of a synod. It was proposed that they should pray, and then proceed at once to the ballot. The ministers called upon were R. Fuller and Elon Galusha, who were considered to represent the opposite sides of the discussion. The former individual is a large slave-holder, an influential leader in his denomination, and had canvassed and condemned Elon Galusha's views and conduct in the public newspapers. I must avow, this whole proceeding was little calculated to remove my objection to the practice of calling upon any individual to offer supplication in a public assembly. After prayer had been offered, they proceeded to the ballot, and we left the meeting, deeply impressed with the profanation of employing the most solemn act of devotion to serve the exigencies of controversy.

In the evening I met a number of the anti-slavery members of the Convention, from whom I learned that the vote had excluded Elon Galusha and all other known abolitionists from official connection with the board, by an hundred and twenty-four to an hundred and seventeen, which being a much smaller majority than was expected, they considered the result a triumph rather than a defeat.

On the 1st of the 5th Month, (May) we returned to Wilmington, in Delaware, where we remained at the hospitable residence of our friend Samuel Hilles, till the 3d instant, and met a number of "Friends," and others, who treated us with great kindness and hospitality, inspected one of the flour mills on the Brandywine river, and the process of drying Indian corn before it is ground; these are some of the oldest flour mills in the State. A. large peach orchard of one of my friends in the neighborhood, was beautifully in bloom. Great quantities of this delicious fruit are raised in Delaware, New Jersey, and Maryland. Here, as in other parts of the States, much money, has been lost by a silk, or rather mulberry tree, mania. Young mulberry trees rose to a dollar and a quarter each, though they can be multiplied almost without limit in a single year. As might have been expected, a re-action took place, many parties were ruined, and berry trees may now be had for the trouble of digging them up.

The number of slaves in this small State is now reduced to four or five thousand, and from all the information I could collect, I feel convinced that if those who are friendly to emancipation were to exert themselves, they would succeed, without much difficulty, in procuring the abolition of slavery within its limits.

My friend, John G. Whittier, being, from increase of indisposition, unable to go forward, I left Wilmington alone, and arrived in New York in time to be present at a Baptist Anti-Slavery Convention, which I had been invited to attend, and at which I was called upon to make a few observations on the present state of the question. Several important resolutions were unanimously adopted, containing a cordial approval of the principles of proceeding of the London Convention, a recommendation that another Convention should be held at the same place in 1842, and an assurance that exertions should be used to promote a good delegation from the Baptist anti-slavery body.

On that respecting Christian fellowship with slave-holding churches, Dr. Brisbane spoke in a touching manner, and said he must support it, though his friends and relations were in the South, and some of those dearest to him still countenanced slavery, or were themselves slave-holders.

On the 6th I returned to Philadelphia, and that evening attended, by invitation, a meeting of the Juvenile Anti-Slavery Society, but took no part in the proceedings. This Society is one of the most efficient in the State; it is entirely confined to young men. I also received a formal invitation to attend other meetings about to be held, which I felt under the necessity of declining, from a belief that I could not participate in the discussions of the meetings with advantage to the cause which we all had at heart, and from the fact that previous to receiving the invitation I had made other arrangements which would occupy most of my time.

The present organized anti-slavery societies in Pennsylvania insist upon the mixed action of men and women in committees, et cet. Those who do not hold with their views have either silently withdrawn, avoid participating in measures which they disapprove, or do not attend meetings when it is expected any such measures will be brought forward. Among such measures may be reckoned the censures which in a few instances have been passed on the London Convention, and the British and Foreign Anti-Slavery Society; censures sometimes more decided in sentiment than temperate in expression. My own inclination would have led me to attend several of these meetings, when my other engagements would have permitted, if I could have done so as an ordinary spectator and hearer; but on considering that I might appear on the one hand to give a tacit sanction to acts and sentiments which I disapproved, or on the other hand, that I might be drawn into controversy by explaining my objections, I concluded to forego the gratification which the proceedings might have afforded me, and I subsequently saw no reason to repent the decision I came to.

During this visit to Philadelphia, I made calls upon various individuals who are deeply interested in the anti-slavery cause, but who have not joined any anti-slavery society. Among these I must instance Professor Charles D. Cleveland, an excellent individual, of the Presbyterian persuasion, a man of fine talents and an accomplished scholar, who is the editor of a paper called the American Intelligencer, in which he has reprinted a very large edition of J.J. Gurney's "Letters from the West Indies," and has extensively distributed it through the post office. This effort of judicious zeal, will probably make hundreds of emancipationists, and disarm hostility and rouse indifference to a great extent. No impartial and benevolent mind can read these authentic details of the results of emancipation in the British Colonies, and remain unconvinced of its safety and blessed fruits to every class of the community. The Professor has published and circulated Dr. Channing's "Emancipation," in the same shape. I also called upon the late Governor of Illinois, Edward Coles, who was born in a slave State, but in early life, while at college, from a conviction of the sinfulness of slave-holding, he resolved upon liberating the negroes which would come into his possession on the death of his father. This he faithfully performed, removed the people to Illinois, and presented them; with lands for their subsistence. He himself soon removed there and became Governor of the territory. It was owing to his determined and vigorous efforts that slavery was made unconstitutional in that State. He was a friend of President Jefferson, and corresponded with him on the subject of slavery. All his liberated slaves prospered, all learned to read and write, two are now ministers of the gospel, and one is the Governor's agent, and a man of property. The number thus freed were between thirty and forty, and their value amounted to half his property; but a, blessing has followed the sacrifice, and he has now retired to Philadelphia with a handsome competence. In the course of conversation, the Governor spoke of the prejudice, against color prevailing here as much stronger than in the slave States, I may add, from my own observation, and much concurring testimony, that Philadelphia appears to be the metropolis of this odious prejudice, and that there is probably no city in the known world, where dislike, amounting to hatred of the colored population, prevails more than in the city of brotherly love!

Among the proofs of this, and of the same feeling in the State at large, it may be noticed that two or three years since, a convention was called for amending the State constitution, which among other changes, formally deprived men of color of the elective franchise. Practically this was of little importance, for it was taking away a right, the exercise of which, if attempted, would have roused popular indignation to the peril of their lives. A yet more obvious sign to the stranger in Philadelphia, are the ruins of "Pennsylvania Hall," which most of my readers are probably aware was destroyed by a pro-slavery mob in the spring of 1838. It stood near the centre of the city, and was sixty-two feet front by one hundred deep, and fifty-two feet to the eaves: the large saloon in the second story with its galleries being capable of holding three thousand persons. On the occasion of its opening, a large number of the friends of emancipation assembled in the city, to attend the anniversary of the Pennsylvania Anti-Slavery Society, and some other meetings connected with the cause. Letters of congratulation on the opening of the hall were received by the managers from ex-president Adams, William Slade and Francis James, members of Congress, Thomas Morris of the U.S. Senate, Judge Jay, Gerritt Smith, and other distinguished friends of equal rights. The letter of the venerable ex-president is written with his characteristic energy, and I quote an extract from it in further proof of the sentiments already expressed on the state of feeling in the land of Penn and Benezet, Pemberton and Franklin, on the subject of slavery.

"The right of discussion upon slavery, and an indefinite extent of topics connected with it, is banished from one-half the States of this Union. It is suspended in both houses of Congress; opened and closed at the pleasure of the slave representation; opened for the promulgation of nullification sophistry; closed against the question, What is slavery? at the sound of which the walls of the capitol staggered like a drunken man.

"For this suppression of the freedom of speech and press, and the right of petition, the people of the free States of this Union are responsible, and the people of Pennsylvania most of all. Of this responsibility, I say it with a pang, sharper than language can express, the city of Philadelphia must take herself the largest share."

The meetings of the first day passed without disturbance. On the evening of the second day, a meeting of the Female Anti-Slavery Society was held in the hall, the proceedings of which were greatly disturbed by a mob of from 1500 to 2000 persons, assembled without. The windows on all sides were beaten in by stones and other missiles, and one or two persons severely injured. The next day the mob lingered about the building, no effort being made by the pro-slavery authorities to disperse them. In the evening the building was attacked, the doors burst open, and fire communicated to the interior; and in the midst of at least 20,000 persons, the noble and costly hall was consumed, with the exception of its bare walls. My friend John G. Whittier, who was present at the time, states that the most dreadful threats were uttered by the rioters against the prominent abolitionists. The house of Samuel Webb was particularly marked for destruction; and as the mob assembled nightly for several days, it is scarcely possible to conceive a more trying situation than that in which the abolitionists were placed. The "Friends" asylum for colored orphans, a small but useful institution, was attacked by a portion of the mob, and the next day the association to which it belongs publicly disclaimed any connection with the abolition societies. One of the daily papers also contained the following, headed "Communication."

"An opinion having become prevalent that a considerable number of the society of Orthodox Friends were present at the late meetings in Pennsylvania Hall, taking an active part in the proceedings, and that they still uphold the principles in relation to slavery and the colored race there promulgated, it is but justice to this respectable body of people to correct public opinion in relation to the subject, by observing that very few if any attended the meetings; that among the society it is doubtful whether twenty individuals are to be found in this city who embrace their doctrines, and that they, as a body, are opposed to the indiscreet course which has been taken by the ultra abolitionists. Had their views been understood in relation to the subject, their property in Thirteenth street would, no doubt, have been spared the violence it has suffered, being in no way connected with abolitionism, but merely designed as a shelter for an unfortunate class of children who have large claims upon the community; and who, upon application made in their behalf for the purposes for which this asylum was designed, even to the mob, I have no hesitation in saying that, as human beings, they would not oppose it."

While other portions of the community were in like manner propitiating the mob, the few but faithful abolitionists of the city calmly but firmly maintained their principles, even at the peril of life and estate. On the morning after the burning of the Hall, the State Anti-Slavery Society, pursuant to adjournment, met at the ruins of the Hall, and, amidst the smoking walls, and with the mob lingering about them, they proceeded to their business—Abraham L. Pennock, the Vice President of the Society, presiding. The editor of the Pennsylvania Freeman, John G. Whittier, whose publication office and papers had been destroyed by the mob, in his next paper published the following editorial article, which I have copied simply to show that while the abolitionists on this occasion maintained their sentiments in a clear and unequivocal manner, they did not indulge in the language of revenge or anger.

"We perhaps need offer no apology to our distant readers, for the want of variety in our present number. Ours must be this week a record of violence—a story of persecution and outrage. We hardly dare trust ourselves to speak upon this matter. It is our desire to do so, if at all, in a tone of calmness,—to hold ourselves aloof, as far as possible, from the present excitement,—to utter our abiding testimony, now dearer than ever to our hearts, not in the language of passion, but firmly and decidedly.

"Our readers will gather from the statements made in the different extracts in our paper, and especially from the Address of the Executive Committee of the State Anti-Slavery Society, the leading facts of the outrage. Of the course pursued by the civil authorities, we leave the community to judge. Our own reliance for protection has been upon that Providence whose mercy is over all,—in the justice of our cause, and in our conscious innocence of heart and integrity of purpose. We rejoice, and in so doing, the abolitionists of Pennsylvania unite with us, that human life was not sacrificed in defence of our Hall, our persons, and our property. We know, indeed, that had the attack been made upon the United States Bank, or any similar institution in this city, the civil authorities would have met its fury, not as now, with a speech only, but with loaded firelocks and fixed bayonets. We know, it is true, that the mob were in a great measure left free to work their mischievous will upon us. But if those in authority have, upon their own principles, treated us with neglect in the hour of our peril, upon them let the responsibility rest. We have thus far survived the onset. Under God, for to him alone are we indebted for protection, we are still left to bear our testimony to the truth. Our consciences are in this matter void of offence. In cheerful serenity of spirit, and not in the tone of menace or boasting, we declare our faith in the principles of emancipation unfaltering—our zeal undiminished—our determination to persevere unaltered. Our confidence in the triumphant and glorious issue of the present struggle remains firm.

'Truth smote to Earth revives again;
The eternal years of God are hers—
But error wounded, shrieks with pain,
And dies among her worshippers.'

"From this time henceforward, Pennsylvania must become the great battle-field of opinion on the subject of slavery. The light of that evening's sacrifice has reached already every portion of our State. Men are every where inquiring why the sacrifice was made? Why a mighty city was convulsed with violence? Why a noble hall was burned by incendiaries in the view of gazing thousands? Why the 'shelter for orphan children' was set on fire, and why the houses of our citizens were surrounded by a ruffian mob? They may be told now by the perpetrators of these outrages, that all has been occasioned by the conduct of the abolitionists. But the delusion cannot last. Truth will make its way to the abused ear of the community; and it will be known that the scenes which have disgraced our city, are directly attributable to the influence of southern slavery. The spirit of free inquiry, now fairly awakened, will never again slumber in this state. Like the Greek fire, it will blaze with fiercer intensity for every attempt to extinguish it."

The proceedings of the authorities and the public at large, consequent upon this act of incendiarism and outrageous violence, were truly characteristic. It is supposed that the destruction of the Hall was planned beforehand, and there is some evidence to show that strangers from the South were implicated in the conspiracy; but, as usual, the old drama of the wolf accusing the lamb was enacted over again, and a pretext was laid hold of, that, in the peculiar state of feeling existing in the community, was almost deemed a justification of all that had happened; though, in truth, it was in the last degree ridiculous. It was asserted that colored men had been seen walking arm in arm with white ladies, and that white men had handed colored females out of their carriages at the door of the Hall, as politely as if they had not belonged to the proscribed class. In several instances, if not in all, these reports were untrue in point of fact, and originated in the existing paradox, that colored men and women are sometimes white, and that white gentlemen and ladies are not unfrequently of dark complexion. As an illustration, I quote the following scene from a letter addressed to me by Robert Purvis, an intelligent and educated man of color, and the son-in-law of James Forten, a wealthy and venerable colored citizen of Philadelphia, recently deceased.

"In regard to my examination before the jury in the Pennsylvania Hall case, I have to say, that it was both a painful and ludicrous affair. At one time the fulness of an almost bursting heart was ready to pour forth in bitter denunciation—then the miserable absurdity of the thing, rushing into my mind, would excite my risible propensities. You know the county endeavored to defend itself against the award of damages, by proving that the abolitionists were the cause of the destruction of the building, in promoting promiscuous intermingling, in doors and out, of blacks and whites, thereby exciting public feeling, &c. A witness, whose name I now forget, in proof of this point, stated, that upon a certain day, hour, &c., a 'negress' approached the Hall, in a carriage, when a white man assisted her in getting out, offered his arm, which was instantly accepted, and he escorted her to the saloon of the building! In this statement he was collected, careful, and solemn—minutely describing the dress, appearance of the parties, as well as the carriage, the exact time, &c.—the clerks appointed for the purpose taking down every word, and the venerable jurors looking credulous and horror-stricken. Upon being called to rebut the testimony I, in truth and simplicity, confirmed his testimony in every particular!! The attorney, on our behalf, David Paul Brown, Esq., a gentleman, scholar, and philanthropist, in a tone of irony peculiarly severe, demanded, 'whether I had the unblushing impudence, in broad day-light, to offer my arm to my wife?' I replied, in deep affectation of the criminality involved, that the only palliation I could offer, for conduct so outrageous was, that it was unwittingly done, it seemed so natural. This, as you might well suppose, produced some merriment at the expense of the witness for the county, and of all others, whose gullibility and prejudice had given credit to what would have been considered, had I been what is called a white man, an awful story."

The proceedings in the case are, I believe, still pending. My friend, Samuel Webb, in a letter dated "11th Month 16th, 1841," says:

"Last 7th day, after several years incessant struggle, we brought the case of the Pennsylvania Hall before the Court of Criminal Sessions. George M. Dallas, Counsel for the County, in opposing the award of the appraisers, (thirty-three thousand dollars, not one-third of what it ought to have been,) spoke for about one hour—the purport of his speech was—that here was no mob at all, (!) that the jury appointed to ascertain the facts had reported to the Court, that the mob, if mob it might be called, was composed of orderly, respectable citizens; and of, course, orderly, respectable citizens could not be a mob. After this I should not be surprised to hear it doubted whether there ever was such a building, or if there was, whether it was ever destroyed; but unluckily the ruined walls are still standing, and if I had my way, there they should stand, until slavery shall be abolished, which it will be, soon after your East India possessions can grow cotton for six cents per lb. by free labor."

To resume the narrative: I paid a visit to the widow of Joseph Lancaster, who, with her three children by a former husband, are living in great obscurity in the suburbs of this city.

I returned to New York on the 10th, for the purpose of being in the city at the time when the religious and benevolent anniversaries are held, and of meeting parties who attend them. Here I had the pleasure of meeting with several warm-hearted abolitionists from distant parts of the country. The first meeting I attended was the anniversary of the American and Foreign Anti-Slavery Society, which, though held at a distance from the centre of the city, in consequence of the pre-engagement of the New York Tabernacle, was well attended, and I believe gave general satisfaction. I was present also at two other of its meetings. I attended several adjourned sittings of a convention called for the purpose of organizing a political "Liberty party," on the grand principle of the abolition of slavery. The chief business in hand was to nominate a President and Vice President of the United States, for the next election, and the choice fell upon my friend James G. Birney, for President, and Thomas Morris, late United States Senator from Ohio, for Vice President. A plan was arranged for putting in nomination abolition candidates for every office in the free States, down to that of constable.

I listened to the discussions that took place with considerable interest, as there are some valuable friends to the cause, men, whose opinions justly carry great weight, who do not think this the best means of bringing political influence to bear upon the question, but who would prefer voting for such anti-slavery candidates, as might be nominated by either of the two great parties already existing, or in the absence of any such candidate would decline voting at all. My own bias was in favor of this course, since it was the one pursued in Great Britain, and which had been so eminently successful in the general election of 1833. I became convinced, however, that the "third party" has strong reasons in its favor, and that in various important respects the abolitionists of the United States are differently circumstanced in regard to elections from those of my own country; and it must not be forgotten that many of the men who pledged themselves on the hustings in England were not faithful at the time of trial. At the last sitting of the Convention, I stated the advantage we had found in England, when we wished to carry any specific measure, of a personal interview with the members of the legislature, who might state facts to them and answer their objections. It was immediately suggested to send a deputation to Albany, where the senate and assembly of the State of New York were then in session, to promote the repeal of two iniquitous laws affecting people of color, and which were to be brought before the consideration of the Houses. One of them is known as the "nine months law." By its provisions a slave-holder could bring his negro "with his own consent" into this free State, and keep him there in slavery for nine months! At the expiration of the time it was of course very easy by a short journey to a neighboring State, to obtain a new license, and thus perpetuate slave-holding in the State of New York. The other law was an act restricting the elective franchise of men of color, to those possessing a fixed amount of property, no such restriction existing in the case of white men. This suggestion was adopted by the Convention, and a deputation appointed, with what success will be seen hereafter.

In order to give a general idea of the course pursued by the "Liberty party," I subjoin a statement of the plan of operation issued by a Philadelphia committee.

"PLAN OF OPERATION.

"A national committee to meet at Utica, to have a general care and oversight of the cause throughout the nation, and to act as a central corresponding committee.—State committees, to perform similar duties, in their States.—County committees, the same in their respective counties.—City and district committees, the same in their respective cities and districts.—Township and ward committees, to have the particular charge of their respective townships or wards.

"This duty may be performed by their appointing a sub-committee, to consist of one member for each block, square, section, sub-division, or neighborhood, whose duty it will be to endeavor to abolitionize his sub-division; or, at least, ascertain, as far as practicable, how many of the legal voters will vote the Liberty ticket, and transmit the number to his city or county committee, which is to forward the number of voters in their city or county to their Stale committee, and the State committee is to forward the number of voters in their State to the national committee; and also to distribute, or cause to be distributed, in his sub-division, such tracts, circulars, notices, tickets, &c., as shall be furnished by his superior committee for that purpose.

"Each committee is to communicate with its next superior committee once a year, or oftener, if required, and to meet at such time and place not less than once a month, as shall be agreed upon between it and its superior committee."

I afterwards was present at one of a series of meetings, held for the purpose of introducing to the public the Amistad captives, Africans of the Mendi country, who had recently regained their freedom. The case of these people is so singularly interesting, that, though some of my readers may be already well acquainted with it, I venture to introduce a brief statement of their history in the Appendix.[A]

A: See Appendix E.

On this occasion a very crowded and miscellaneous assembly attended, to see and hear the Mendians, although the admission had been fixed as high as half a dollar, with the view of raising a fund, to carry them to their native country. Fifteen of them were present, including one little boy and three girls. Cinque their chief, spoke with great fluency in his native language; and his action and manner were very animated and graceful. Not much of his speech was translated, yet he greatly interested his audience. The little boy could speak our language with facility; and each of them read without hesitation one or two verses in the New Testament. It was impossible for any one to go away with the impression, that in native intellect these people were inferior to the whites. The information which I privately received, from their tutor and others who had full opportunities of appreciating their capacities and attainments, fully confirmed my own very favorable impressions.

One evening during my stay, I took tea with twelve or fifteen colored gentlemen, at the house of a colored family. The refined manners and great intelligence of many of them would have done credit to any society. The whites have a monopoly of prejudice, but not a monopoly of intellect; nor of education and accomplishments; nor even of those more trivial, yet fascinating graces, which throw the charm of elegance and refinement over social life.

I found from the conversation I had with my colored friends, on different occasions, that the prejudice against them was steadily, and not very slowly, giving way; yet several instances were mentioned, of recent occurrence, which show that it is still strong: I will quote one only. A colored gentleman informed me that last winter a near female relative being about to take a journey by railway to Philadelphia, she was compelled, though in delicate health, to travel in the comfortless, exposed car, expressly provided for negroes, though he offered to pay double fare for a place in the regular carriage. A lady, not of the proscribed class, who has long resided in New York, mentioned to me as a marked indication of a favorable change in regard to color, the holding of such meetings as those at which the Amistad captives were introduced. Such an exhibition, instead of causing a display of benevolent interest among all classes, would, some years ago, have excited the malignant passions of the multitude, and probably caused a popular out-break. Another sign of the times was, that white and colored children might be seen walking in procession without distinction, on the anniversaries of the charity schools. The same lady, in whose veracity I place full confidence, informed me that there is now residing in this city, a native of Cuba, formerly a slave-holder at the Havana, who had narrowly escaped assassination from a negro. He had threatened the slave with punishment the following day, but the desperate man concealed himself in his master's room, and in the night, stabbed and killed his mistress by mistake, instead of his master. Three negroes were executed as principal and accessories; but their intended victim was so terrified that he left Havana for New York. His fears, not his conscience, were alarmed, for he still carries on his diabolical traffic between Africa and Cuba, and is reported to have gained by it, last year, one hundred thousand dollars. He lives in great splendor, and has the character of a liberal and generous man, but with the most implacable hatred to the blacks. "One murder makes a villain, thousands a hero." How wide the distinction between this man and the wretches who paid the forfeit of their lives for a solitary murder![A]

A: Sir F. Buxton has shown that two lives at least are sacrificed for every slave carried off from Africa.

On the evening of the 17th, in company with several of my abolition friends, I started for Albany, where the State legislature was then in session. The distance from New York is about a hundred and fifty-five miles, and is frequently performed by the steamers, on the noble river Hudson, in nine hours and a half up the stream, and in eight hours down. On these steamers there is accommodation for several hundred passengers to lodge, and the fare is only one dollar, with an extra charge for beds and meals. For an additional dollar, two persons may secure a state room to themselves.

As night drew on, and the deck began to be cleared, I observed a well-dressed black man and woman sitting apart, and supposing they could obtain no berths on account of their color, I went and spoke to them. I told them I and several others on board were abolitionists. The man then informed us they were escaping from slavery, and had left their homes little more than two days before. They appeared very intelligent, though they could neither read nor write, and described to us how they had effected their escape. They had obtained leave to go to a wedding, from which they were not expected to return till the evening of the day following. Having procured forged certificates of freedom, for which they paid twenty-five dollars, each, they came forward with expedition by railway and steam boat. They had heard of emancipation in the British West Indies, and the efforts of the abolitionists in the States, but they were unacquainted with the existence of vigilance committees, to facilitate the escape of runaway slaves. We assisted them to proceed to the house of a relative of one of our party, out of the track of the pursuer, should they be followed. There is little doubt that they have safely reached Canada, for I was told at Albany, public opinion had become so strong in favor of self-emancipation, that if a runaway were seized in the city, it is probable he would be rescued by the people.

I would also point attention to the fact, which is brought to light by this relation, that the slave-holders have not only to contend with the honest and open-handed means which the abolitionists most righteously employ,[A] to facilitate the escape of slaves, but with the mercenary acts of members of their own community, who live by the manufacture and sale of forged free papers.

A: See Deut. xxiii, 15, 16.

During my stay in Albany, I waited upon William H. Seward, the Governor, and on Luther Bradish, the Lieutenant Governor of the State of New York. It will, I trust, be considered no breach of confidence, if I state that I found their sentiments on the true principles of liberty, worthy of the enlightened legislators and first magistrates of a free republic. They concur in the general sentiment that public opinion in this metropolitan State is making rapid progress in favor of full and impartial justice to the people of color, a movement to which their own example in the high stations which they adorn has given a powerful impulse.

I attended part of the sittings of the Senate and Assembly, and conversed with a number of members of both houses. The public business was transacted with at least as much order and decorum as in the Lords and Commons of Great Britain. I left Albany the same evening, and had the satisfaction of hearing, a few days afterwards, that the repeal of "the nine months law" had passed both houses, and was ratified by the Governor; and that in the Assembly upwards of fifty members had voted for it, although it was thought not ten would have done so two years since. By this change of the law any slave brought by his master within the limits of the State, even with his own consent, is not obliged to return to slavery.

I proceeded by way of New York to Hartford in Connecticut, in order to be present at an anti-slavery meeting of the State Society, to which I had been invited. On my arrival, on the afternoon of the 19th, I found the meeting assembled, and in the chair my friend J.T. Norton, a member of the Connecticut legislature, a munificent and uncompromising friend to the anti-slavery cause, and one of the delegates to the London Convention. A black minister of religion addressed the meeting in an able and interesting manner. Soon after the close of his speech, a circumstance, quite unexpected to me, introduced a discussion on the right of women to vote and publicly act, conjointly with men. The chairman decided that the motion in favor of it was negatived, but the minority required the names on both sides to be taken down; this consumed much time, and disturbed the harmony of the meeting. I attended in the evening a committee of the legislature, which was sitting at the court house, to hear the speeches of persons who were allowed to address the committee in support of a petition that the word "white" should be expunged from the constitution of Connecticut. This change would of course give equal rights to the colored class. When I entered, the same colored minister I had heard in the afternoon, was addressing the committee. He was listened to with great attention, not only by the members, but by near two hundred of the inhabitants, who were present. He was followed on the same side, by a white gentleman in a very strong and uncompromising speech. The next day I paid my respects to William W. Ellsworth, the Governor of the State, and to one of the judges of the court; and afterwards attended the adjourned meeting of the Anti-Slavery Society. The vexed question of "women's rights" was again brought forward in another shape; the names on both sides again called for, with the same result as before. My belief was fully confirmed, that those who differ so widely in sentiment, have no alternative but to meet and act in distinct organizations.

The Amistad captives arrived at Hartford on the afternoon of the same day, and were to address a meeting in the evening. An anti-slavery bazaar or fair which I visited this day, furnished ample testimony of the zeal of the female friends of the oppressed slave in this district. I returned the same evening to New Haven, and subsequently received a copy of two resolutions, approving the proceedings of the general Anti-Slavery Convention, in which it is stated by the Connecticut anti-slavery committee, "they have abundant evidence that the cause of the slave has been essentially promoted thereby;" also recommending "that a convention of men from all parts of the world, friendly to the cause of immediate emancipation, be again called in London, in the summer of 1842."

On the 21st, I proceeded to the residence of Judge Jay, where I was very kindly received by his wife and family, the Judge himself being from home. On his return the next day, I had much interesting conversation with him on the prospects of our cause. He is convinced that it is making steady progress, notwithstanding the schism in the anti-slavery ranks. He said also, that of the runaway slaves who called at his house, some have told him that their condition had improved of late years; others saw no change in their treatment; not one has complained that they suffered more than formerly, in consequence of the discussions at the North about abolition. With regard to the free blacks, he fears that the persecution of them by the slave-holders has increased; though at the North the prejudice against them has unquestionably, in his opinion, been much mitigated by the efforts of the abolitionists. It is an interesting fact, and one that ought to encourage the humble and retired laborer in the cause of truth and righteousness, that this able and distinguished advocate of the claims of the oppressed slaves and people of color, was converted to his present views by Elizabeth Heyrick's pamphlet, "Immediate, not Gradual, Abolition of West India Slavery." Let me for a moment pause to render a tribute of justice to the memory of that devoted woman. Few will deny that the long and heart-sickening interval that occurred between the abolition of the slave-trade of Great Britain, and the emancipation of her slaves, was owing to the false, but universal notion, that the slaves must be gradually prepared for freedom: a notion that we now confess is as contrary to reason and Christian principle as it is opposed to the past experience of our colonies. Yet a generation passed away while the abolitionists of Great Britain were trying to make ropes of sand—to give practical effect to an impracticable theory; pursuing a delusion, which this honored woman was the first to detect; and that less by force and subtlety of argument, than by the statement of self-evident truths, and by the enforcement of the simple and grand principle that Christianity admits of no compromise with sin. This was an easy lesson, yet it was one which our senators and statesmen, our distinguished philanthropists, and our whole anti-slavery host were slow to learn. The pamphlet produced little immediate effect, but to cause its writer to be regarded as an amiable enthusiast and visionary. It now remains a monument of the indestructible nature, and the irresistible power of truth, even when wielded by feeble and despised hands.

Judge Jay read to me part of a very interesting and important manuscript, which he had prepared on the preservation of international peace. He suggests that any two nations, entering into an alliance, should embody in their treaty a clause mutually binding them to refer any dispute or difficulty that may arise, to the arbitration of one or more friendly powers. As he has concluded to publish his pamphlet, I trust it will shortly be in the hands of the friends of peace in this country, as well as in America. This idea is beautifully simple, and of easy application. Through the kindness of the author, I have been furnished with a long and important extract from his manuscript, which I am permitted to lay before the British public by anticipation, in the Appendix to the present work.[A] On returning from his hospitable mansion, he obligingly sent his carriage with me to Sing Sing, but the steamboat had started earlier than we expected, and I hired a carriage and a pair of horses, with the driver, who was also the proprietor, to convey me the remainder of the way to New York. The distance for which I engaged it, was thirty-six miles, for the moderate sum of five dollars. On the road, the man pointed out the place where Major Andre was taken, whose tragical end excites sympathy even to this day, in the breast of the Americans. On entering the city, we passed a man in livery, and my driver remarked, "There, that is English; I would not wear that for a hundred dollars a day." Long may the American, who lives by his daily labor, preserve this feeling of honorable independence.

A: See Appendix F.

During my stay at New York this time, I was the guest of my friend William Shotwell, Jr., at whose hospitable dwelling, I afterwards took up my abode, whenever I lodged in the city. From the 24th to the 28th, I was chiefly occupied in attending the sittings of the Friends' Yearly Meeting of this State; and, during the intervals, in seeing many Friends in private company. I was much encouraged to find among them, a considerable number thoroughly imbued with anti-slavery sentiments; especially, from the western parts of the State. The subject of slavery was introduced, in the Yearly Meeting, by reading the Epistle from the Society in England, which is elsewhere quoted.[A] This was followed on the part of many, by expressions of deep feeling; and the question was referred to a committee, for practical consideration. In consequence of the report of this committee, at a subsequent sitting, five hundred copies of the English address were directed to be printed, and circulated among Friends, within the compass of the Yearly Meeting; and the whole subject was referred to its "meeting for sufferings," with an earnest recommendation, that they should embrace every right opening for furthering the great object. The clerk of the Yearly Meeting expressed his firm conviction, that the work was on the wheel, and that nothing would be permitted to stop its progress, until, either in mercy or in judgment, the bonds of every slave should be broken. He spoke in a very powerful manner. In most of the epistles sent out from this Yearly Meeting, as well as from that of Philadelphia, the subject of slavery was introduced, and commended to the earnest consideration of the body, here and elsewhere. Previous to the assembling of the Yearly Meeting, I had placed in the hands of one of its members, the following letter:

A: See Appendix A.

My Dear Friend,—Wilt thou have the kindness to ask the Friends with whom it rests to grant such a request, to permit the use of the meeting house at a convenient time, either during the Yearly Meeting, or before those who attend from the country leave the city, for the purpose of affording my friend John Candler an opportunity of giving Friends some outline of emancipation in Jamaica. I should like at the same time to give a little information on the state of the anti-slavery question in other parts of the world. John Candler, it is I believe generally known, visited Jamaica with the full sanction of the "meeting for sufferings," in London. My visit to this country had no particular reference to the members of our Society, but my friends in England kindly furnished me with the enclosed documents.

Affectionately,

JOSEPH STURGE.

New York, 5th Month 17th, 1841.

This request was kindly complied with. The large meeting house was granted for the evening of the 27th. The clerks of the men's and women's meetings gave public notice of it in their respective assemblies. The former, the venerable and worthy Richard Mott, encouraged Friends to be present, and said, as a thinking and reasoning people, they need fear no harm from a calm consideration of the subject. The attendance was large, including, I believe, most of those Friends who were from the country. The following brief notice of it in the American and Foreign Anti-Slavery Reporter, will explain the character of the meeting.

"On Thursday evening of last week, the members of the Society of Friends (Orthodox,) assembled in this city at their Annual Meeting, met at their meeting house in Orchard street, to listen to the statements of John Candler, of England, lately returned from a visit to the West India Islands, as to the results of emancipation in those Islands, and also of our esteemed friend, Joseph Sturge, in reference to the general subject of emancipation throughout the world.

"The meeting was largely attended. The successful and happy results of the immediate emancipation of the slaves of the colonies, as detailed by John Candler, were calculated to strengthen the conviction that to do justice is always expedient. Joseph Sturge gave a history of the progress of the anti-slavery cause in Great Britain from the time of the old abolition society, of which Thomas Clarkson was a member, and of which he is sole survivor. He also glanced at the state of the cause in other quarters of the globe—at the efforts for East India emancipation, and at late movements in France, Brazil and Spain, in favor of emancipation; concluding with a most affecting appeal to the members of his religious society to omit no right opportunity for pleading for the slave, and for hastening the day of his deliverance.

"We take pleasure in recording such evidences that the good old testimony of the Society of Friends, on this subject, is still maintained among them. The Friends of the past generation set a noble example to other Christian sects, by emancipating their slaves, from a sense of religious duty; and it seems to us, that those of the present day have great responsibilities resting upon them; and that it especially becomes them to see to it that their light is not hidden in this hour of darkness and prejudice, on the subject of human rights. The slaveholder and his victim both look to them;—the one with deprecating gesture, and words of flattery—the other in beseeching and half reproachful earnestness. We cannot doubt that the agonizing appeal of the latter is listened to by all who truly feel the weight of their religious testimonies resting upon them; and we trust there will be found among them, an increasing zeal to secure to these unhappy victims of avarice and the lust of power, that liberty which George Fox, two centuries in advance of his contemporaries, declared to be 'the right of all men.'"

When the assembly broke up, the clerk of the Yearly Meeting, who sat by us, expressed to me his entire satisfaction with the proceedings, as did others present. One influential member of the Society, however, who met me the next day in the street, stated very decidedly his disapprobation of the tenor of certain parts of my address; but I found that he condemned me on hearsay evidence, not having attended the meeting himself. On the 29th, I was favored with a call from Lieutenant Governor Cunningham, of St. Kitts, on his way to England, who gave a very favorable account of the continued good conduct of the emancipated slaves in that Island. It is surely an eminent token of the divine blessing on a national act of justice and mercy, that evidence of this kind should have been so abundantly and uniformly supplied from every colony where slavery has been abolished. A fine black man was brought to me about this time, who showed me papers by which it appeared he had lately given one thousand five hundred dollars for his freedom. He had since been driven from the State in which he lived, by the operation of a law, enacted to prevent the continued residence of free people of color, and has thus been banished from a wife and family, who are still slaves. He has agreed with their owner, that if he can pay two thousand five hundred dollars, in six years, his wife and six children shall be free, and he was then trying to get employment in New York, in the hope of being able to raise this large sum within the specified time.

On the 29th, I proceeded to Burlington; while I was there five or six Friends drew up and presented me with a resolution, expressive of their readiness and desire to join with other members of their religious society in active efforts for the abolition of slavery.

On the 30th, I paid a second visit to my venerable friend John Cox. The next morning his grandson kindly accompanied me to Mount Holly, to see the humble dwelling of the late John Woolman. I afterwards received from John Cox a letter, from which I quote the following extract relating to this remarkable man, whose character confers interest even on the most trivial incidents of his life which can now be remembered:

"Since our separation on the morning of the 31st ultimo, when my grandson accompanied thee to Mount Holly, I have been there, it having been previously reported that the ancient, humble dome, which passed under thy inspection as the residence of John Woolman, he never inhabited, though that he built the house (as Solomon built the temple,) is admitted. With a view to remove this erroneous impression, I sought and obtained an interview with the only man now living in the town, who was contemporary with John Woolman, (now eighty years of age,) and in habits of occasional intercourse with him. He informed me that John Woolman's daughter (an only child,) and her husband resided in the house when her father embarked for London, which was in the year 1772, as recorded in his journal. The fact of residence is corroborated by the circumstance of the search for and destruction of caterpillars in the apple orchard, which I think, was related to thee.

"The sage historian of by-gone days, whom I met at Mount Holly, spake of his being at John Woolman's little farm, in the season of harvest, when it was customary, and so remains to the present time, for farmers to slay a young calf or a lamb; the common mode is by bleeding in the jugular vein; but with a view to mitigate the sufferings of the animal in that mode, he had prepared, and kept by him for that express purpose, a large block of wood with a smooth surface, and after confining the limbs of the animal, it was laid gently thereon, and the head severed from the body at one stroke."

While in this neighborhood, I made a call on Nathan Dunn, the proprietor of the "Chinese collection." He resided many years at Canton, and since his return has built himself a mansion in the Chinese style. His museum of Chinese curiosities is by far the most extensive and valuable which has ever been seen out of that country, and forms one of the most attractive and instructive exhibitions in Philadelphia; one whose character and arrangement are quite unique, and which has some pretensions to the title of "China in miniature." It occupies the whole of the lower saloon of that splendid building recently erected at the corner of Ninth and George streets, by the Philadelphia Museum Company. The visitor's notice is first attracted by a series of groups of figures, representing Chinese of nearly every grade in society, engaged in the actual business of life. The figures, in their appropriate costume, are modeled in a peculiarly fine clay, by Chinese artists, with exquisite skill and effect. All are accurate likenesses of originals, most of whom are now living. The following enumeration of one of the cases, expanded in the subsequent description, which I quote from the catalogue, will give an idea of the manner in which Chinese life and manners are illustrated:

"CASE VIII.—No. 21. Chinese Gentleman.—22. Beggar asking alms.—23. Servant preparing breakfast.—24. Purchaser.—25. Purchaser examining a piece of black silk. The proprietor behind the counter making calculations on his counting board.—Clerk entering goods.—Circular table, with breakfast furniture.

"This has been arranged so as to afford an exact idea of a Chinese retail establishment. Two purchasers have been placed by the counter: one of whom is scrutinizing a piece of black silk that lies before him. The owner, behind the counter, is carelessly bending forward, and intent on casting an account on the 'calculating dish,' while his clerk is busy making entries in the book, in doing which he shows us the Chinese mode of holding a pen, or rather brush, which is perpendicularly between the thumb and all the fingers. A servant is preparing breakfast. A circular eight-legged table, very similar to those used by our great grandfathers, is spread in the centre of the shop. Among its furniture, the ivory chopsticks are the most novel. On the visitor's right hand sits a gentleman, with a pipe, apparently a chance comer, 'just dropped in' about meal time; on the left, a blind beggar stands, beating two bamboo sticks against each other, an operation with which he continues to annoy all whom he visits, till he is relieved by some trifling gratuity, usually a single cash. A gilt image of Fo is inserted in the front part of the counter, and a small covered tub, filled with tea, with a few cups near by, standing on the counter, from which customers are always invited to help themselves.

"The merchants and shop-keepers of Canton are prompt, active, obliging, and able. They can do an immense business in a short time, and without noise, bustle, or disorder. Their goods are arranged in the most perfect manner, and nothing is ever out of its place. These traits assimilate them to the more enterprising of the Western nations, and place them in prominent contrast with the rest of the Asiatics. It is confidently asserted by those who have had the best opportunities of judging, that as business men, they are in advance of Spanish, Italian, and Portuguese merchants.

"There is a variety of amusing inscriptions on the scrolls hung up in the interior of some of the shops, which serve at the same time to mark the thrifty habits of the traders. A few specimens are subjoined:—'Gossipping and long sitting injure business.' 'Former customers have inspired caution—no credit given.' 'A small stream always flowing.' 'Genuine goods; prices true.' 'Trade circling like a wheel,' et cet."

In addition to the above models, the collection includes an almost innumerable variety of specimens of the fine arts and manufactures, comprising almost every article of use and luxury—furniture, modern and antique porcelain, models houses, pagodas, boats, junks, and bridges; pieces of silk, linen, cotton, grass-cloth, and other fabrics manufactured in China for home consumption; books and drawings, costume, idols, and appendages of worship; weapons, musical instruments, signs, mottoes, and entablatures, and numerous paintings, which last, it is justly observed, "will satisfy every candid mind that great injustice has been done to the Chinese artists, in the notion hitherto entertained respecting their want of skill. They paint insects, birds, fishes, fruits, flowers, with great correctness and beauty; and the brilliancy and variety of their colors cannot be surpassed. They group with considerable taste and effect, and their perspective—a department of the art in which they have been thought totally deficient—is often very good."

Many of the paintings represent actual scenes and occurrences; and thus, like the models before mentioned, bring living China before the mind's eye. The following is a good example.

"910. View of the interior of the Consoo House, with the court in session, for the final decision of the charge of piracy committed by the crew of a Chinese junk on a French captain and sailors, at a short distance from Macao.

"The French ship, Navigatre, put in to Cochin China in distress. Having disposed of her to the government, the captain, with his crew, took passage for Macao in a Chinese junk belonging to the province of Fokien. Part of their valuables consisted of about 100,000 dollars in specie. Four Chinese passengers bound for Macao, and one for Fokien, were also on board. This last apprised the Frenchmen in the best manner he could, that the crew of the junk had entered into a conspiracy to take their lives and seize their treasure. He urged that an armed watch should be kept. On reaching the Ladrone Islands, the poor Macao passengers left the junk. Here the Frenchmen believed themselves out of danger, and exhausted by sickness and long watching, yielded to a fatal repose. They were all massacred but one, a youth of about nineteen years of age, who escaped by leaping into the sea, after receiving several wounds. A fishing boat picked him up and landed him at Macao, where information was given to the officers of government, and the crew of the junk, with their ill-gotten gains, were seized, on their arrival at the port of destination in Fokien.

"Having been found guilty by the court, in their own district, they were sent down to Canton, by order of the Emperor, to the Unchat-see, (criminal judge) to be confronted with the young French sailor. This trial is represented in the painting. The prisoners were taken out of their cages, as is seen in the foreground. The Frenchman recognized seventeen out of the twenty-four; but when the passenger, who had been his friend, was brought in, the two eagerly embraced each other, which scene is also portrayed in the painting. An explanation of this extraordinary act was made to the judge, and the man forthwith set at liberty. A purse was made up for him by the Chinese and foreigners, and he was soon on his way homeward. The seventeen were decapitated, in a few days, in the presence of the foreigners; the captain, was to be put to a 'lingering death,' the punishment of traitors, and the stolen treasures were restored."

I do not quote the above for the sake of the anecdote, though the relation is authentic, but as, affording a striking illustration of the advanced civilization of the Chinese. It shows that the supremacy of the law is universal, and its administration efficient. The criminals, in this instance, are promptly seized, tried, and condemned on strong evidence; but, before they are executed, reference is made to the distant metropolis, Pekin. Here it is observed, that the most important witness was not 'confronted with the prisoners,' and they are forthwith directed to be conveyed to Canton, to be examined in his presence. Seventeen are recognized by him and are executed. The rest escape. Now this is just what might have taken place under the best ordered governments of Europe. The humane maxims of British jurisprudence, if not acknowledged in theory, may be here witnessed in practical operation, and the single circumstance of referring capital convictions to the Emperor, in his distant metropolis, for confirmation, before they are carried into effect, shows a respect for human life, even in the persons of criminals, which is one of the surest tokens of a high state of civilization. Such is the criminal jurisprudence of China, in practice; in theory, its just praise has been awarded, some years ago, by an able writer in the Edinburgh Review. He says:—

"The most remarkable thing in this code, is its great reasonableness, clearness, and consistency; the businesslike brevity and directness of the various provisions, and the plainness and moderation of the language in which they are expressed. It is a clear, concise, and distinct series of enactments, savoring throughout of practical judgment and European good sense. When we turn from the ravings of the Zendavesta, or the Puranas, to the tone of sense and of business of this Chinese collection, we seem to be passing from darkness to light—from the drivellings of dotage to the exercise of an improved understanding; and, redundant and minute as these laws are in many particulars, we scarcely know any European code that is at once so copious and so consistent, or that is nearly so free from intricacy, bigotry and fiction."

In addition to what have been noticed, the Chinese exhibition includes a copious and very interesting collection of specimens of the natural history of China.

I trust the extended notice I have given to the subject, will at least prove that this is not an ordinary exhibition, but a representation of a distant country and remarkable people, in which amusement is most skilfully and philosophically made subservient to practical instruction. A beneficent Creator has implanted within us a thirst for information about other scenes and people. To be totally devoid of this feeling would argue, perhaps, not merely intellectual but moral deficiency. Such being the case, the founder of the "Chinese collection" deserves to be regarded as a public benefactor, for, by spending a few hours in his museum, with the aid of the descriptive catalogue, one may learn more of the Chinese than by the laborious perusal of all the works upon them that have ever been written.[A]

A: While the above was passing through the press, I have learned that this interesting Collection has arrived for exhibition in this country.

I cannot dismiss this subject without expressing my deep regret that the British public should appear to view with indifference, or complacency, the cruel and unjust war which our Government is now waging against this highly cultivated and unoffending people, at the instigation of a handful of men, who have acquired wealth and importance in the vigorous pursuit of an immoral and unlawful traffic, by means the most criminal and detestable. I have attempted, since my return from the United States, to give some expression to my sentiments, in a letter which has been widely circulated, and which will be found reprinted in the Appendix.[A] I trust none under whose notice this subject may come will endeavor to evade their share of responsibility. If the present war with China were the sole consideration, perhaps no course would be left to the Christian citizen, but to record his protest and mourn in silence; but the conclusion of the war per se would not terminate the difficulty, for trade and mutual intercourse between the two countries, on the basis of a reciprocation of interests, can never be restored till the EAST INDIA COMPANY'S OPIUM TRADE, a traffic, like the slave trade, hateful in the sight of God and man, is suppressed; or at least, until British connection with it is severed; If asked who are the guilty persons, I would say, in the first instance, the East India Company; secondly, the opium smugglers; thirdly, the British government, and lastly, the British people, who, by silent acquiescence, make the whole guilt, and the whole responsibility their own.

A: See Appendix G.

The author of the most popular modern work on China, who long superintended the interests of the British merchants at Canton, and whose work, to a considerable extent, reflects their views, after stating the increasing discouragements imposed by the authorities on foreign commerce, the effect for the most part of opium smuggling, and other lawless proceedings, observes:—"These (discouragements) are their (the British merchants) real subjects of complaint in China; and whenever the accumulation of wrong shall have proved, by exact calculation, that it is more profitable, according to merely commercial principles, to remonstrate than submit, these will form a righteous and equitable ground of quarrel!!"[A]

A: Davis's China and the Chinese, (Murray's Family Library,) vol. i. p. 195.

The remonstrance here alluded to is WAR, as is apparent from the context of the passage, as well as from the fact, that by the author's own showing no other kind of remonstrance remained to be tried. The true "casus belli" is set forth by anticipation in this passage without disguise, and by one who knew well, and has clearly described the causes that were operating to produce a rupture. The opium merchants have discovered that now, in the fulness of time, it is profitable to go to war with China, and forthwith the vast power of Great Britain, obedient to their influence, is put in motion to sustain their unrighteous quarrel, to the unspeakable degradation of the character of this professedly Christian nation. The morality of the war on our side, is the morality of the highwayman; that morality by which the strong in all ages have preyed upon the weak. And though a handful of unprincipled men find their account in it, before the people of Great Britain have paid the expenses of the war, and the losses from derangement and interruption of commerce, it will cost millions more than all the profit that has ever accrued to them from the opium trade. From what motive then, do we uphold a traffic, which is the curse of China, the curse of India, and a calamity to Great Britain? Such a war may be fruitful in trophies of military glory, if such can be gained by the slaughter of the most pacific people in the world; but to expect that it will promote the reputation, the prosperity, or the happiness of this country, would be to look for national wickedness to draw down the Divine blessing. The descriptive catalogue of the "Ten thousand Chinese things," concludes with sentiments on this subject which do equal honor to the head and heart of the writer.

"Alas for missionary efforts, so long as the grasping avarice of the countries, whence the missionaries go, sets at nought every Christian obligation before the very eyes of the people whom it is sought to convert! Most devoutly do we long for the auspicious day, when the pure religion, that distilled from the heart, and was embodied in the life of Jesus, shall shed its sacred influence on every human being; but, in our inmost soul we believe it will not come, till the principles of religion shall take a firmer hold on the affections of those who profess to receive it, and rear a righteous embankment around their sordid and stormy passions. When the missionary shall find an auxiliary in the stainless life of every compatriot who visits the scene of his labors, for purposes of pleasure or of gain,—when he can point not only to the pure maxims and sublime doctrines proclaimed by the Founder of his faith, but to the clustering graces that adorn its professors,—then indeed will the day dawn, and the day star of the millennium arise upon the world."

During my short stay in Philadelphia on this occasion, I visited several of its prisons, philanthropic institutions, et cet. These are pre-eminently the glory of this beautiful city; yet as they have been often described, I shall pass them by in silence, with the exception of two, the Refuge, and the Penitentiary; which I briefly notice because I may offer a few general remarks in another place, on the important subject of prison discipline. The Refuge is an asylum for juvenile delinquents, founded on the just and benevolent principle that offences against society, committed by very young persons, should be disciplined by training and education, rather than by punishment. In this establishment there are from eighty to ninety boys, and from forty to fifty girls, of ages varying from eight to twenty-one years. The former are employed in various light handicraft trades, and the latter in domestic services, and both spend a portion of their time in school. They remain from six months to four years. From the statements of the superintendent and matron, it appeared that about three-fourths of the male, and four-fifths of the female inmates become respectable members of society, and the remainder are chiefly such as are fifteen or sixteen years of age when first admitted into the Refuge, an age at which character may be considered as in a great measure formed. The labor of the children pays about one-fifth of the expense of the establishment, the rest being defrayed by the legislature.

The prejudice of color intrudes even here, no children of that class being admitted into the Refuge. Colored delinquency is left to ripen into crime, with little interference from public or private philanthropy. As might have been expected, colored are more numerous than white criminals, in proportion to relative population; and this is appealed to as a proof of their naturally vicious and inferior character; when in fact the government and society at large are chargeable with their degradation.

The Penitentiary contained, at the time of my visit, about three hundred and forty male, and thirty-five female prisoners. In this celebrated prison, hard labor is combined with solitary confinement, an arrangement which is technically known as the "separate system." Silence and seclusion are so strictly enforced as to be almost absolute and uninterrupted; even the minister who addresses the prisoners on the Sabbath is known to them only by his voice. A marked feature of this institution is security without the aid of any deadly weapon, none being allowed in the possession of the attendants, or indeed upon the premises. As compared with the "silent system," exhibited in the not less famed prisons of the State of New York, this is much less economical, as the mode of employing the prisoners, in their solitary cells, greatly lessens the power of a profitable application of their labor. If prisoners exceed their allotted task, one-half of their surplus earnings is given to them on being set at liberty. My visit was too cursory to enable me to give a decisive opinion on the "separate system," but I confess my impression is, that the punishment is one of tremendous and indiscriminating severity, and I find it difficult to believe that either the safety of society, or the welfare of the prisoner, can require the infliction of so much suffering. Criminals are sometimes condemned for very long periods, or for life; and in these cases, I was informed, occasionally manifested great recklessness and carelessness of their existence. I am also not quite convinced that the reformation of prisoners is effected to the extent sometimes inferred from the small number of recommittals. A statistical conclusion cannot be drawn from this datum, unsupported by other proofs.

On the 2d of the 6th Month, (June,) I proceeded to Wilmington, Delaware, with my friend John G. Whittier. Here we met a company of warm-hearted and intelligent abolitionists, with whom we discussed the prospects of the cause. It was calculated that if compensation were conceded, to which many would on principle object, a tax of less than one dollar per acre would buy up all the slaves in the State for emancipation. It was admitted by all, that the abolition of slavery would advance the price of land in a far greater ratio; probably ten or twenty dollars per acre.

We went forward the same evening to Baltimore, accompanied by one of our Wilmington acquaintance, and in the railway carriage was a member of the Society of Friends from North Carolina, who, though a colonizationist, appeared to be a man of candor. He gave it as his opinion that the majority of the free people of that State are in favor of the abolition of slavery. We also had the company, a part of the way, of Samuel E. Sewall, Counsellor at Law, in Boston, an early and tried abolitionist, and a faithful friend and legal adviser of the free people of color.

The next morning, we left Baltimore for Washington, two hours' ride by railway. The railroads of this country being often extremely narrow, the trains frequently pass almost close to the piers of the bridges and viaducts, a circumstance which explains the following printed notice in the carriages: "Passengers are cautioned not to put their arms, head, or legs out of the window."

In passing from a free to a slave State, the most casual observer is struck with the contrast. The signs of industry and prosperity on the broad face of the country are universally in favor of the former, and that to a degree which none but an eye witness can conceive. This fact has been often noticed, and has been affirmed by slaveholders themselves, in the most emphatic terms. In cities the difference is not less remarkable, and was forcibly brought to our notice in the hotel at which we took up our residence on arriving at Washington, and which, though the first in the city, and the temporary residence of many members of Congress, was greatly deficient in the cleanliness, comfort, and order, which prevail in the well-furnished and well-conducted establishments of New York, Philadelphia, Boston, &c. At this house, I understood, some of the servants were free, and others slaves.

We were now in the District of Columbia, the seat of this powerful Federal Government, and in the city of Washington, the metropolis of the United States. Here are concentrated as it were into one focus, the associations of the past, connected with the great struggle for independence, and the memory of those names and events which already belong to history. Whatever may be our political principles, or the opinions of those who like myself consider all resort to arms as forbidden under the Christian dispensation, it is impossible to recall without emotion, transactions which have exerted and will continue to exert, so marked an influence on the destinies of mankind. This city was not the scene of those events, but it was erected to be a perpetual monument of them, and in the limited district of ten miles square, in which it stands, the Government which was then called into existence reigns sole and supreme. If a stranger were to inquire here for the monuments of the fathers of the Revolution, the American would proudly point to the Capitol, with the national Congress in full session, and to the levee of the President, crowded by free citizens, and representatives of foreign nations. The United States were thirteen dependent colonies, they are now twenty-six sovereign States, rich and populous, covering the face of this vast continent, and compacted into one powerful confederacy. But notwithstanding the glowing emotions which seem naturally called forth by the locality, there is many an American who bitterly feels that the District of Columbia is the shame, rather than the glory of his country. Here is proclaimed to the whole world by the united voice of the American people, "We hold these truths to be self-evident—that all men are created equal; that they are endowed by their Creator with certain inalienable rights—that among these are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness;" and here also by a majority of the same people expressing their deliberate will, through their representatives, this declaration is trampled under foot, and turned into derision.[A]

A: "Large establishments have grown up upon the national domain, provided with prisons for the safe keeping of negroes till a full cargo is procured; and should, at any time, the factory prisons be insufficient, the public ones, erected by Congress, are at the service of the dealers, and the United States Marshal becomes the agent of the slave trade."—Judge Jay's View of the action of the Federal Government in behalf of Slavery, page 93. "But the climax of infamy is still untold. This trade in blood,—this buying, imprisoning, and exporting of boys and girls eight years old,—this tearing asunder of husbands and wives, parents and children,—is all legalized, in virtue of authority delegated by Congress!! The 249th page of the laws of the city of Washington is polluted by the following enactment, bearing date 28th July, 1838:—'For a to trade or traffic in slaves for profit, four hundred dollars.'"—Ibid, page 98.

The District of Columbia is the chief seat of the American slave trade; commercial enterprize has no other object! Washington is one of the best supplied and most frequented slave marts in the world. The adjoining and once fertile and beautiful States of Virginia and Maryland, are now blasted with sterility, and ever-encroaching desolation. The curse of the first murderer rests upon the planters, and the ground will no longer yield to them her strength. The impoverished proprietors find now their chief source of revenue in what one of themselves expressly termed, their "crop of human flesh." Hence the slave-holding region is now divided into the "slave-breeding," and "slave-consuming" States. From its locality, and, from its importance as the centre of public affairs, the District of Columbia has become the focus of this dreadful traffic, which almost vies with the African slave trade itself in extent and cruelty, besides possessing aggravations peculiarly its own.[A] Its victims are marched to the south in chained coffles, overland, in the face of day, and by vessels coastwise. Those who protest against these abominations are the abolitionists; a body whose opinions are so unpopular that no term of reproach is deemed vile enough for their desert; yet if these should hold their peace, the very stones would surely cry out. The state of things in this District has one peculiar feature; being under the supreme local government of Congress, it presents almost the only tangible point for the political efforts of those hostile to slavery. Against slavery in any but their own States, the abolitionists have neither the power nor the wish to exert that constitutional interference which they rightfully employ in the States of which they are citizens; but with respect to the District of Columbia, they are, in common with the whole republic, responsible for the exercise of political influence for the abolition of slavery within its limits. Hence this is the grand point of attack. They have experienced a succession of repulses, but their eventual success is certain; the political influence of the slave-holding interest, which is now paramount, and which controls and dictates the entire policy of the general Government will be destroyed. Then will the abolition of American slavery be speedily consummated.

A: "Human flesh is now the great staple of Virginia, In the legislature of this State, in 1833, Thomas Jefferson Randolph declared that Virginia had been converted into 'one grand menagerie, where men are reared for the market, like oxen for the shambles.' This same gentleman thus compared the foreign with the domestic traffic: 'The trader (African) receives the slave, a stranger in aspect, language and manner, from the merchant who brought him from the interior. But here, sir, individuals whom the master has known from infancy,—whom he has seen sporting in the innocent gambols of childhood,—who have been accustomed to look to him for protection,—he tears from the mother's arms, exiles into a foreign country, among a strange people, subject to cruel task-masters. In my opinion, it is much worse.'—Mr. Gholson, of Virginia, in his speech in the legislature of that State, January 18, 1831, says: 'The master forgoes the service of the female slave, has her nursed and attended during the period of her gestation, and raises the helpless and infant offspring. The value of the property justifies the expense; and I do not hesitate to say, that in its increase consists much of our wealth.'—Professor Dew, now President of the College of William and Mary, Virginia, in his review of the debate in the Virginia legislature, 1831-3, speaking of the revenue arising from the trade, says: 'A full equivalent being thus left in the place of the slave, this emigration becomes an advantage to the State, and does not check the black population as much as at first view we might imagine; because it furnishes every inducement to the master to attend to the negroes, to encourage breeding, and to cause the greatest number possible to be raised. Virginia is, in fact, a negro-raising State, for other States.'—Mr. C.F. Mercer asserted, in the Virginia Convention of 1829, 'The tables of the natural growth of the slave population demonstrate; when compared with the increase of its numbers in the commonwealth for twenty years past, that an annual revenue of not less than a million and a half of dollars is derived from the exportation of a part of this population.'"—Judge Jay's View, pages 88, 89.

Very soon after our arrival, we proceeded to the House of Representatives, then sitting, and were favored, by introductions from a member, with seats behind the Speaker's chair. The subject before the House was, of course, peculiarly interesting to me, being the proposed re-enactment of the "gag;" a rule of the House, by which petitions for the abolition of slavery in the District of Columbia, are laid upon the table, without being read or referred, and thus are virtually rejected. One of the speakers, William Slade, of Vermont, who was opposed to the "gag," told the pro-slavery members that they were greatly mistaken in supposing that such a measure would suppress the anti-slavery feeling of the country. They might, for a time, block up the Potomac, but it would only be to direct its waters into a new channel; in the same way as the rejection of anti-slavery petitions had resulted in the formation of a third abolition political party, which was now regularly organized and in the field. Having previously heard much of the virulence of the pro-slavery members, I was particularly impressed with the silence and attention with which they listened to this speech, and with the feeling which seemed evidently to prevail, that the subject could no longer be met with contempt and ridicule. One of the liberal members told me afterwards, that they felt themselves in a different atmosphere to what they did two years ago, both in the House and in the city, when touching upon this subject. Before the debate closed, the House divided on the question, whether ex-president Adams, the veteran defender of the constitutional right of petition, and who had brought forward this motion for the repeal of the "gag," was entitled to the right of reply. This was decided in his favor, and the House adjourned till the beginning of the following week.

In the afternoon, I proceeded, by a steam packet, with one of my friends, to Alexandria, about six miles distant, on the other side of the Potomac. A merchant, to whom I had an introduction, kindly accompanied us to a slave-trading establishment there, which is considered the principal one in the District. The proprietor was absent; but the person in charge, a stout, middle-aged man, with a good-natured countenance, that little indicated his employment, readily consented to show us over the establishment. On passing behind the house, we looked through a grated iron door, into a square court or yard, with very high walls, in which were about fifty slaves. Some of the younger ones were dancing to a fiddle, an affecting proof, in their situation, of the degradation caused by slavery. There were others, who seemed a prey to silent dejection. Among these was a woman, who had run away from her master twelve years ago, and had married and lived ever since as a free person. She was at last discovered, taken and sold, along with her child, and would shortly be shipped to New Orleans, unless her husband could raise the means of her redemption, which we understood he was endeavoring to do. If he failed, they are lost to him for ever. Another melancholy looking woman was here with her nine children, the whole family having been sold away from their husband and father, to this slave-dealer, for two thousand two hundred and fifty dollars. This unfeeling separation is but the beginning of their sorrows. They will, in all probability, be re-sold at New Orleans, scattered and divided, until not perhaps two of them are left together. The most able-bodied negro I saw, cost the slave-dealer six hundred and eighty-five dollars.

Our guide told us that they sometimes sent from this house from fifteen hundred to two thousand slaves to the South in a year, and that they occasionally had three hundred to four hundred at once in their possession. That the trade was not now so brisk, but that prices were rising. The return and profits of this traffic appear to be entirely regulated by the fluctuations in the value of the cotton. Women are worth one-third less than men. But one instance of complete escape ever occurred from these premises, though some of the slaves were occasionally trusted out in the fields. He showed us the substantial clothing, shoes, &c., with which the slaves were supplied when sent to the South; a practice, I fear, enforced more by the cupidity of the buyers, than the humanity of the seller. Our informant stated, in answer to inquiries, that by the general testimony of the slaves purchased, they were treated better by the planters than was the case ten years ago. He also admitted the evils of the system, and said, with apparent sincerity, he wished it was put an end to.

We went afterwards to the city jail, to see a youth whose case I had heard of in Delaware, who had come to Alexandria on board a vessel, and had here been seized and imprisoned on suspicion of being a slave, not having any document to prove his freedom. He had now been incarcerated for near twelve months, and though admitted by the jailer and every one else to be free, he was about to be sold in a few days into slavery for a term, in order to pay the jail-fees, amounting to eighty dollars. In the evening on returning to Washington, we paid a visit by appointment to John Quincy Adams, ex-president of the United States; who though considerably more than seventy years of age, is yet one of the most assiduous and energetic members of the House of Representatives, and one of the most influential public men of the day. To this must be added the far higher praise that his distinguished powers are employed in the service of humanity, truth, and justice. How rare is it to witness such a union of intellectual and moral greatness! Posterity will do justice to his fame, when slavery shall exist only in the records of the past, and when it shall be related with wonder, that this venerable man, standing almost alone in his defence of the right of petition, received daily anonymous letters threatening him with assassination. He received us very kindly, and in the course of conversation expressed how much importance he attached to the late repeal of the "nine months law," in the State of New York, as a favorable indication of the current of public feeling. He did not appear sanguinely to anticipate that he should be in a majority on his pending motion for the repeal of the "gag."

One of the principal objects of my visit to Washington was to present an Address to the President, from the Committee of the British and Foreign Anti-Slavery Society. In the course of my inquiries of various official persons, members of Congress, et cet., I found that to obtain an audience for the express purpose would be very difficult, as no member of Congress appeared willing to undertake the unpopular service of introducing the bearer of such a document. I was not disposed to apply to the British Ambassador, who on some occasions had shown a want of sympathy with the anti-slavery cause. I found, however, that it was not contrary to etiquette, in this country, for a private individual to address a note to the President, to which, in ordinary courtesy, according to the custom of the place, he has a right to expect a reply. I would remark, however, that nothing is more easy than to gain access to the President; but I felt that to avail myself of those facilities, to place in his hands a document which he might object to receive, would be uncandid. I therefore addressed a note to him, stating that I was the bearer of a memorial from the Committee of the British and Foreign Anti-slavery Society, signed by Thomas Clarkson, addressed to the President of the United States, in which I said, "It may, perhaps, be right to state, that the memorial refers to slavery and the slave-trade in the United States, and that it was written before the death of General Harrison was known in Europe." I then asked permission to present it.

To this I received no reply. We were afterwards introduced to the President, by a member of Congress, who evinced an anxiety that I should make no reference to the memorial; and the President, on his part, made no allusion to it, or to my letter to himself. After this interview, we proceeded to the Senate, but it had risen just as we entered. I had a short conversation with Henry Clay, who alluded to Joseph John Gurney's work on the West Indies, which I need scarcely add, is written in a series of letters to this statesman. He said that the recent short crop of sugar in Jamaica was a proof that the author had been misled in the favorable information he had collected, and also that this deficiency in the crop was a proof not only of the idleness, but of the immorality of the negroes. He accused my companion, John G. Whittier, of deserting him, after having been his warm friend; and on J.W.'s giving his reasons for so doing, he complained that the abolitionists improperly interfered with the affairs of the South, though he made an exception in favor of the Society of Friends. He inquired if J.G. Whittier was a "Friend" in regular standing, evidently intimating a doubt on that point, on account of his being so decided an abolitionist. The praise of such men is the strongest testimony that could be adduced to the declension of the Society of Friends in anti-slavery zeal. To a great extent I fear their sentiments on this subject have been held traditionally; and that in many cases, they have not only done nothing themselves, but by example and precept have condemned the activity of others; I trust, however, a brighter day in regard to their labors is approaching. I feel disinclined to take leave of Henry Clay, without some animadversions which, on the public character of a public man, I may offer without any breach of propriety. In early life, that is in some part of the last century, he supported measures tending to the "eradication of slavery" in Kentucky, and at various periods since, he has indulged in cheap declamation against slavery, though he is not known to have committed himself by a solitary act of manumission. On the contrary, having commenced life with a single slave, he has industriously increased the number to upwards of seventy. As a statesman, his conduct on this question has been consistently pro-slavery. He indefatigably negotiated for the recovery of fugitive slaves from Canada, when Secretary of State, though without success. In the Senate he successfully carried through the admission of Missouri into the Union, as a slave State. He has resisted a late promising movement in Kentucky in favor of emancipation; and lastly, in one of his most elaborate speeches, made just before the late presidential election, the proceedings of the abolitionists were reviewed and condemned, and he utterly renounced all sympathy with their object. By way of apology for his early indiscretion, he observes, "but if I had been then, or were now, a citizen of any of the planting States—the southern or southwestern States—I should have opposed, and would continue to oppose, any scheme whatever of emancipation, gradual or immediate."

In this extract, and throughout the whole speech, slavery is treated as a pecuniary question, and the grand argument against abolition, is the loss of property that would ensue. Joseph John Gurney, who appears to have been favorably impressed by Henry Clay's professions of liberality, his courteous bearing, and consummate address, manifested a laudable anxiety that so influential a statesman should be better informed on the point on which he seemed so much in the dark; he therefore addressed to him his excellent "Letters on the West Indies," of which the great argument is, that emancipation has been followed by great prosperity to the planters, and attended with abundant blessings, temporal and spiritual, to the other classes, and that the same course would necessarily be followed by the same results in the United States. He has accumulated proof upon proof of his conclusions supplied by personal and extensive investigation in the British Colonies. But Henry Clay shews no sign of conviction. Yet though he made to us the absurd remark, already quoted, on Joseph John Gurney's work, I have too high an opinion of his understanding to think him the victim of his own sophistry. He is a lawyer and a statesman. He is accustomed to weigh evidence, and to discriminate facts. I have little doubt that all my valued friend would have taught him, he knew already. He could not be ignorant of the contrast presented by his own State of Kentucky, and the adjoining State of Ohio, and that the difference is solely owing to slavery. If J.J. Gurney could have shewn that abolition would soon be the high road to the President's chair, it is not improbable that he would have made an illustrious convert to anti-slavery principles. Henry Clay's celebrated speech before alluded to, was delivered in the character of a candidate for the Presidency just before the last election—it was prepared with great care, and rehearsed beforehand to a select number of his political friends. The whig party being the strongest, and he being the foremost man of that party, he might be looked upon as President-elect, if he could but conciliate the south, by wiping off the cloud of abolitionism that faintly obscured his reputation. He succeeded to his heart's desire in his immediate object, but eventually, by this very speech, completely destroyed his sole chance of success, and was ultimately withdrawn from the contest. Thus does ambition overleap itself.[A]

A: As a practical commentary on Henry Clay's professions of a regard for the cause of human liberty, I append the following advertisement, which, about two years ago, was circulated in Ohio:

"THREE HUNDRED DOLLAR'S REWARD.

"Run away from James Kendall, in Bourbon County, Ky., to whom he was hired the present year, on Saturday night last, the 14th instant, a negro man, named Somerset, about twenty-six years of age, five feet, seven or eight inches high, of a dark copper color, having a deep scar on his right cheek, occasioned by a burn, stout made, countenance bold and determined, and voice coarse. His clothing it is thought unnecessary to describe, as he may have already changed it.

"ALSO,

"From E. Muir, of the same county, on the same night, (and supposed to have gone in company,) a negro man, named Bob, about twenty-nine years old, near six feet high, weighing about 180 or 90 pounds, of a dark copper color, of a pleasant countenance, uncommonly smooth face, and a remarkable small hand for a negro of his size. He spells and reads a little. His clothing was a greenish jean coat and black cloth pantaloons.

"We will give the above reward for the delivery of said negroes to the undersigned, or their confinement in jail, so that we get them; or 150 dollars for either of them, if taken out of the State, or 100 dollars for them, or 50 dollars for either, if taken out of the county, and in the State.

"HENRY CLAY, Senior,
"E. MUIR.

"Bourbon Co. Ky., Sept. 17, 1839."

On leaving the Senate House, we drove to a slave-dealer's establishment, near at hand, and within sight of the Capitol. I have given some particulars of this visit elsewhere, which I need not repeat. I cast my eye on some portraits and caricatures of abolitionists, British and American, among whom Daniel O'Connell figured in association with Arthur Tappan, and the ex-president Adams. The young man in charge of the establishment began to explain them, for our amusement; on which, one of my companions pointed to me, and informed him I was an English abolitionist. He looked uneasy at our presence, and evidently desirous we should not prolong our stay. He told us there were five or six other dealers in the city who had no buildings of their own, and who kept their slaves here, or at the public city jail, at thirty-four cents per diem, the difference in comfort being wholly on the side of the private establishments.

We subsequently visited the city jail, to which reference is made in the letter below, and were able to confirm this statement from our own observation.

We left for Baltimore this afternoon. Although I had not succeeded in presenting the address before-mentioned to the President, I little regretted the failure, being convinced that it would not be less generally read by the public on that account, and in this I have not been disappointed. I proceeded at once, the next morning, to Philadelphia; and here I concluded to print and publish the following letter, which, was sent, through the post, to the President, and to each member of the Senate and House of Representatives.

"To the Abolitionists of the United States.

"I was commissioned by the committee of the British and Foreign Anti-Slavery Society, to present a memorial from them to your President, and proceeded to Washington, a few days ago, accompanied by John G. Whittier, of Massachusetts, and a friend from the State of Delaware.

"It was my first visit to the seat of legislation of your great republic. On our arrival we went to the House of Representatives, then in session. A member from Maryland was speaking on our entrance, who was the author of a resolution, which had been carried in a former Congress, excluding nearly three millions of your countrymen, on whom every species of wrong and outrage is committed with impunity, from all right of petition, either by them selves or their friends. He was advocating the re-enactment of this very resolution for the present Congress, and stated that he had a letter from your President approving the measure. Although I believe I do not speak too strongly when I say an attempt to enforce such a resolution by any crowned head in the civilized world, would be inevitably followed by a revolution, yet it seemed evident that no small portion of your present members were in favor of it. It was with no ordinary emotion that I saw the venerable ex-president Adams at his post, nobly contending against this violation of the rights of his countrymen, and I could not but regret that, with one or two exceptions, be appeared to find little support from his younger colleagues of the free States.

"The same day we visited one of the well-known slave-trading establishments at Alexandria. On passing to it we were shewn the costly mansion of its late proprietor, who has lately retired on a large property acquired by the sale of native born Americans. In an open enclosure, with high walls which it is impossible to scale, with a strong iron-barred door, and in which we were told that there were sometimes from three to four hundred persons crowded, we saw about fifty slaves. Amongst the number thus incarcerated was a woman with nine children, who had been cruelly separated from their husband and father, and would probably be shortly sent to New Orleans, where they would never be likely to see him again, and where the mother may be for ever severed from every one of her children, and each of them sold to a separate master. From thence we went to the Alexandria city jail, where we saw a young man who was admitted to be free even by the jailer himself. He had been seized and committed in the hope that he might prove a slave, and that the party detaining him would receive a reward. He had been kept there nearly twelve months because he could not pay the jail fees, and instead of obtaining any redress for false imprisonment, was about to be sold into slavery for a term to reimburse these fees.

"The next morning I was desirous of handing to the President the memorial, of which the following is a copy:

"'Address to the President of the United States, from the Committee of the British and Foreign Anti-Slavery Society.

"'SIR,—As the head of a great Confederacy of States, justly valuing their free constitution and political organization, and tenacious of their rights and their character, the Committee of the British and Foreign Anti-slavery Society, through their esteemed coadjutor and representative, Joseph Sturge, would respectfully approach you in behalf of millions of their fellow-men, held in bondage in the United States. Those millions are denied, not only the immunities enjoyed by the citizens of your great republic generally, and of the equal privileges and the impartial protection of the civil law, but are deprived of their personal rights, so that they cease to be regarded and treated, under your otherwise noble institutions, as MEN, except in the commission of crime, when the utmost rigor of your penal statutes is invoked and enforced against them; but are reduced to the degraded condition of "chattels personal in the hands of their owners and possessors, to all intents, constructions, and purposes, whatsoever."

"'This is the language and the law of slavery; and under this law, guarded with jealousy by their political institutions, the slaveholders of the South rest their claims to property in man But, sir, there are claims anterior to all human laws, and superior to all political institutions, which are immutable in their nature,—claims which are the birthright of every human being, of every clime, and of every color,—claims which God has conferred, and which man cannot destroy without sacrilege, or infringe without sin. Personal liberty is among these, the greatest and best, for it is the root of all other rights, the conservative principle of human associations, the spring of public virtues, and essential to national strength and greatness.

"'The monstrous and wicked assumption of power by man, over his fellow man, which slavery implies, is alike abhorrent to the moral sense of mankind; to the immutable principles of justice; to the righteous laws of God; and to the benevolent principles of the gospel. It is, therefore, indignantly repudiated by all the fundamental laws of all truly enlightened and civilized communities, and by none more emphatically than by that over which, Sir, it is your honor to preside.

"'The great doctrine, that God hath "created all men equal, and endowed them with certain inalienable rights, and that amongst these are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness," is affirmed in your Declaration of Independence, and justified in the theory of your constitutional laws. But there is a stain upon your glory; slavery, in its most abject and revolting form, pollutes your soil; the wailings of slaves mingle with your songs of liberty; and the clank of their chains is heard, in horrid discord with the chorus of your triumphs.

"'The records of your States are not less distinguished by their wise provisions for securing the order and maintaining the institutions of your country, than by their ingenious devices for riveting the chains, and perpetuating the degradation of your colored brethren; their education is branded as a crime against the State—their freedom is dreaded as a blasting pestilence—the bare suggestion of their emancipation is proscribed as treason to the cause of American independence.

"'These things are uttered in sorrow; for the committee deeply deplore the flagrant inconsistency, so glaringly displayed between the lofty principles embodied in the great charter of your liberties, and the evil practices which have been permitted to grow up under it, to mar its beauty and impair its strength. But it is not on these grounds alone, or chiefly, that they deplore the existence of slavery in the United States. Manifold as are the evils which flow from it—dehumanizing as are its tendencies—fearful as its reaction confessedly is on its supporters,—the reproach of its existence does not terminate on the institutions which gave it birth: the sublime principles and benign spirit of Christianity are dishonored by it. In the light of Divine Truth it stands revealed, in all its hideous deformity, a crime against God,—a daring usurpation of the prerogative and authority of the Most High! It is as a violation of His righteous laws, an outrage on His glorious attributes, a renunciation of the claims of His blessed gospel, that they especially deplore the countenance and support it receives among you; and, in the spirit of Christian love and fraternal solicitude, would counsel its immediate and complete overthrow, as a solemn and imperative duty, the performance of which no sordid reasons should be permitted to retard—no political considerations prevent. Slavery is a sin against God, and ought, therefore, to be abolished.

"'The utter extinction of slavery, and its sister abomination, the internal slave-trade of the United States, second only in horror and extent to the African, and in some of its features even more revolting, can only be argued, by the philanthropy of this country, on the abstract principles of moral and religious duty; and to those principles the people of your great republic are pledged on the side of freedom beyond every nation in the world!

"'The negro, by nature our equal, made like ourselves in the image of his Creator, gifted by the same intelligence, impelled by the same passions and affections, and redeemed by the same Savior, is reduced by cupidity and oppression below the level of the brute, spoiled of his humanity, plundered of his rights, and often hurried to a premature grave, the miserable victim of avarice and heedless tyranny! Men have presumptuously dared to wrest from their fellows the most precious of their rights—to intercept as far as they may the bounty and grace of the Almighty—to close the door to their intellectual progress—to shut every avenue to their moral and religious improvement, to stand between them and their Maker! It is against this crime the committee protest as men and as Christians, and earnestly but respectfully call upon you, Sir, to use the influence with which you are invested, to bring it to a peaceful and speedy close; and, may you in closing your public career, in the latest hours of your existence on earth, be consoled with the reflection that you have not despised the afflictions of the afflicted, but that faithful to the trust of your high stewardship, you have been "just, ruling in the fear of the Lord," that you have executed judgment for the oppressed, and have aided in the deliverance of your country from its greatest crime, and its chiefest reproach.

"'On behalf of the Committee,

"'THOMAS CLARKSON.

"'British and Foreign Anti-Slavery Society, for the Abolition of Slavery and the Slave-trade throughout the world.

"'27, New Broad Street, London, March 5th, 1841.'

"I thought it most candid to address a letter to the President informing him of the character of the foregoing memorial, rather than take advantage of a merely formal introduction to present it, without a previous explanation. To this letter no reply was received, and no allusion was made to it by the President at a subsequent introduction, which we had to him. It may be proper to mention in this connection, that memorials of a similar character, bearing upon slavery and the slave-trade, signed by the venerable Clarkson, have been presented to different Heads of Governments, in other parts of the world, and have been uniformly received with marked respect.

"Previous to our departure, we visited a private slave-trading establishment in the city, and looked in upon a group of human beings herded together like cattle for the market, within an enclosure of high brick walls surrounding the jail. The young man in attendance, informed us that there were five or six other regular slave-dealers in the city, who, having no jails of their own, either placed their slaves at this establishment, or in the public CITY PRISON. The former was generally preferred, on account of its superior accommodations in respect to food and lodging. On my making some remarks to the young man on the nature of his occupation, he significantly, and as I think, very justly replied, that he knew of no reasons for condemning slave-traders, which did not equally apply to slave-holders. You will bear in mind that this was said within view of the Capitol, where slave-holders control your national legislation, and within a few minutes' walk of that mansion where a slave-holder sits in the presidential chair, placed there by your votes; and it is certainly no marvel, that, with such high examples in his favor, the humble slave-dealer of the District should feel himself in honorable company, and really regard his occupation as one of respectability and public utility.

"From thence we proceeded to the city prison, an old and loathsome building, where we examined two ranges of small stone cells, in which were a large number of colored prisoners. We noticed five or six in a single cell, barely large enough for a solitary tenant, under a heat as intense as that of the tropics. The keeper stated that in rainy seasons the prison was uncomfortably wet. The place had to us a painful interest, from the fact that here Dr. Crandall, a citizen of the free States, was confined until his health was completely broken down, and was finally released only to find a grave, for the crime of having circulated a pamphlet on emancipation, written by one of the friends who accompanied me.[A] On inquiry of the keeper, he informed us that slaves were admitted into his cells, and kept for their owners at the rate of thirty-four cents per day, and that transfers of them from one master to another sometimes took place during their confinement; thus corroborating the testimony of the keeper of the private jail before mentioned, that this city prison, the property of the people of the United States, and for the rebuilding of which, a large sum of your money has been appropriated, is made use of by the dealers in human beings as a place of deposit and market; and thus you, in common with your fellow citizens, are made indirect participators in a traffic equal in atrocity to that foreign trade, the suppression of which, to use the words of your President in his late message, 'is required by the public honor, and the promptings of humanity.'

A: On being released from prison, Dr. Crandall went to Kingston, Jamaica, to recruit his health. A gentleman of that city, W. Wemyss Anderson, found him in his lodgings, solitary and friendless, and rapidly sinking under his disease. He took him, though a perfect stranger, into his own house; and the last days of Dr. Crandall were soothed by the kind sympathy and attentions of a Christian family. It was also manifest, that he enjoyed the sunshine of inward peace, and the rich consolations of the gospel. His kind host, whom I count it a privilege to call my friend, obeyed, in this instance, the apostolic injunction, and experienced the consequent reward, "Be not forgetful to entertain strangers, for thereby some have entertained angels unawares."

"As one who has devoted much of his humble labors to the cause you wish to promote, I perhaps shall be excused for thus stating these facts to you, as they all passed before my personal observation in the course of a few hours. I shall deem it right to publish them in Europe, where I am about shortly to return. Recollect, they all occurred and exist within the District of Columbia, and that those who elect the legislators who uphold the slave system, are justly responsible for it in the sight of God and man. Is it not all the natural consequence of your electing slave-holders and their abettors to the highest offices of your State and nation? Some of your most intelligent citizens have given it as their opinion that fully two-thirds of the whole population of the United States are in favor of the abolition of slavery; and my own observation, since I landed on these shores, not only confirms this opinion, but has convinced me that there is a very rapid accession to their numbers daily taking place; and yet we have the extraordinary fact exhibited to the world, that about two hundred and fifty thousand slave-holders—a large proportion of whom, bankrupt in fortune and reputation, have involved many of the North in their disgrace and ruin—hold in mental bondage the whole population of this great republic, who permit themselves to be involved in the common disgrace of presenting a spectacle of national inconsistency altogether without a parallel. I confess that, although an admirer of many of the institutions of your country, and deeply lamenting the evils of my own government, I find it difficult to reply to those who are opposed to any extension of the political rights of Englishmen, when they point to America and say, that where all have a control over the legislation but those who are guilty of a dark skin, slavery and the slave-trade remain not only unmitigated, but continue to extend; and that while there is an onward movement in favor of its extinction, not only in England and France, but even in Cuba and Brazil, American legislators cling to this enormous evil, without attempting to relax or mitigate its horrors. Allow me, therefore, to appeal to you by every motive which attaches you to your country, seriously to consider how far you are accountable for this state of things, by want of a faithful discharge of those duties for which every member of a republican government is so deeply responsible; and may I not express the hope that, on all future occasions, you will take care to promote the election of none as your representatives who will not practically act upon the principle that in every clime, and of every color, 'all men are equal?'

"Your sincere friend,

"JOSEPH STURGE.

"Philadelphia, 6th Month 7th, 1842."

This letter was extensively reprinted, not only in the anti-slavery but in pro-slavery newspapers, both in the North and South. In the numerous angry comments upon it, no attempt that has come to my knowledge was made to deny any one of my statements. One of the papers intimates that the vote by which the house soon after refused to adopt a specific and exclusive rule against abolition petitions, was brought about by "the sinister influence of Mr. Sturge." I need not add how happy I should have been to have possessed the influence with which this writer has so liberally invested me, and that I should have regarded it as a talent to be employed and improved to the very utmost.

I spent from the 5th to the 11th of the Sixth Month, (June) in Philadelphia and the vicinity, during which time, I made numerous calls, and met several large parties in private.

During this stay, in company with John G. Whittier, I paid a visit to my excellent friend, Abraham L. Pennock, at his residence in Haverford, Delaware county, about ten miles from the city. He is an influential member of the Society of Friends, and until recently he has been a resident in the city. He has, for many years, been an uncompromising abolitionist, and an active member and officer of anti-slavery societies; yet he appears to enjoy the respect and confidence not only of his anti-slavery associates, but of the Society of Friends, and the community generally. I found him a warm advocate, in practice as well as theory, of entire abstinence from the products of slave labor, as well as of independent political action on the part of abolitionists. He expressed much regret that he was unable to attend the General Anti-Slavery Convention, in London, and gave his cordial approbation to its proceedings.[A]

A: See Appendix H.

We reluctantly bade farewell to our kind friend and his interesting family, all the members of which appear to share his zeal and untiring devotion to the cause of the oppressed, and returned to our lodgings in the city. Even now I look back to this visit as among the most grateful recollections of my sojourn in the United States.

I may mention, in this connection, that A.L. Pennock, as well as others with whom I conversed on the subject, spoke with much regret of the want of faithfulness on the part of members of the Society of Friends, in maintaining their testimony against slavery, while exercising their civil rights as citizens and electors. From all I could learn, I have been led to fear that "Friends" in the United States, with few exceptions, are in the practice of voting for public officers, without reference to their sentiments on the important subject of slavery. At the late Presidential election it is very evident that the great body of "Friends" who took any part in it, voted for John Tyler, the slaveholder.

Among the active friends of emancipation, who occupy a high station in our society, I can scarcely omit mentioning Enoch Lewis, of Chester county, Pennsylvania, whose talents and literary acquirements, devoted as they are, to the maintenance and promulgation of the principles and Christian testimonies of our religious society, deservedly command a high degree of respect.

Among the members of the society which have separated from "Friends" in Philadelphia and elsewhere, I met with many warm and steady friends of emancipation, some of whom have proved their sincerity by great sacrifices. Amongst these I cannot omit mentioning James and Lucretia Mott, James Wood, Dr. Isaac Parish, and Thomas Earle, of this city.

I republished in Philadelphia, with the permission of the author, in two separate pamphlets, for distribution amongst those to whom it was addressed, "A Letter to the Clergy of various Denominations, and to the Slave-holding Planters in the Southern parts of the United States of America, by Thomas Clarkson." This remarkable production was written after its venerable author had attained his eightieth year, and has been pronounced by a very competent judge the most vigorous production of his pen. As its circulation had but just commenced when I left the United States, I could not judge of the effect produced by this energetic appeal from one whose name must command respect, even from the slave-holders; but I have since been informed it has been read with interest and attention.

I had several conferences with "Friends" who were interested in the cause, to discuss the best mode of engaging the members of the Society to unite their efforts on behalf of the oppressed and suffering slaves; and though no immediate steps were resolved on, yet I found so much good feeling in many of them, that I cannot but entertain a hope, that fruit will hereafter appear. I had spent much of my time and labor in Philadelphia, particularly among that numerous and influential body with whom I am united in a common bond of religious belief, and I trust of Christian affection. Of the kindness and hospitality I experienced I shall ever retain a grateful recollection; yet I finally took my leave of this city, under feelings of sorrow and depression that so many of the very class of Christian professors who once took the lead in efforts for the abolition of slavery, efforts evidently attended with the favor and sanction of the Most High, should now be discouraging, and holding back their members from taking part in so righteous a cause. Among the warmest friends of the slave, sound both in feeling and sentiment, are a few venerable individuals who are now standing on the brink of the grave, and whose places, among the present generation, I could not conceal from myself, there were but few fully prepared to occupy. I had found in many Friends much passive anti-slavery feeling, and was to some extent cheered by the discovery. May a due sense of their responsibility rest upon every follower of Christ, to remember them that are in bonds, and under affliction, not only with a passive, but with an active and self-denying sympathy, a sympathy that makes common cause with its object.

Apart from the fact, that Philadelphia is one of the most beautiful cities in the world, to a member of the Society of Friends it must ever be an object of peculiar interest. Here William Penn made his great experiment of a Christian government. Here, to the annual assemblies of Friends, came Warner Mifflin, and John Woolman, and James Pemberton, and George Dillwyn, and other worthies of the past, who have now gone from works to rewards. A few miles distant, in Frankford, is still to be seen the residence of the excellent Thomas Chalkley. Here Benezet exemplified, in the simplicity, humility, and untiring benevolence of his daily life, the lessons inculcated in his writings. And here, at this day, are a larger number of members of our religious society than can be found congregated elsewhere, within an equal space of territory. They are, in general, in easy circumstances, many of them wealthy, and occupying a high rank in the community.

Who can recur, without a lively feeling of interest, to the hopes and prayers of the benevolent founder of the city, as expressed in affecting terms in his farewell letter, written as he was about taking his final departure for England.

"And thou, Philadelphia, the virgin settlement of this province, named before thou wert born, what love, what care, what service, and what travail has there been to bring thee forth, and preserve thee from such as would defile thee! Oh, that thou mayest be kept from the evil that would overwhelm thee! that faithful to the God of Mercies, in a life of righteousness, thou mayest be preserved to the end!"

On the 11th, with John G. Whittier, I left for New York, and the next day we proceeded by steam packet to Newport, on Rhode Island, to attend the New England yearly meeting of the Society of Friends, which was to be held the next week. We arrived about seven o'clock in the morning. I found the change of climate particularly refreshing and agreeable. During the last fortnight, the range of the thermometer had frequently reached 94 degrees or 96 degrees in the shade: a tropical heat, without those alleviations which render the heat of the tropics not only tolerable, but sometimes delightful. In Rhode Island, the climate, while we were there, was almost as temperate as an English summer.

Some parts of the New England States are much resorted to by southern families of wealth; and their annual migrations have the effect of materially adding to the vast amount of complicated pro-slavery interests which exist in the free States, as well as of diffusing pro-slavery opinions and feelings throughout the entire community. We may hope this current will soon set in the opposite direction. The season was too early for the arrival of these visitors, and the hotels were generally filled with "Friends," collected from near and distant places, to attend the yearly meeting. There were upwards of a hundred boarding at the same house with ourselves. Soon after our arrival I addressed a letter, making the same application for the use of the meeting house for my friend, John Candler, who was also here, and myself, which had been complied with at New York, forwarding at the same time my credentials. My request, however, in this instance was not granted. Yet there was plainly a willingness on the part of many to receive information, and we caused it to be known that we should be at home at our hotel, on the evening of the sixteenth. About two hundred friends assembled, and appeared interested in a brief outline of the state and prospects of the cause in Europe which I endeavored to give them.

The subject of slavery was brought before the yearly meeting by a proposition from one of its subordinate, or "quarterly meetings," to encourage more action, on the part of the society, for its abolition. A proposal was immediately made, and assented to without discussion, that the consideration of it should be referred to a committee. On the reading of the address on slavery from the London yearly meeting, it was, in like manner, immediately proposed and agreed to, that it should be referred to the same committee. At a subsequent sitting, this committee reported, that they should recommend the whole subject to be left under the care of their "Meeting for Sufferings," which was adopted. With the exception of reading the documents, and going through the necessary forms of business, these proceedings passed almost in silence; yet, in the several epistles drawn up to be forwarded to the other yearly meetings, allusion was made to the deep exercise of Friends at this meeting, on the subject of slavery, and their strong desire and wish to encourage others to embrace every right opening for promoting its abolition; with a plain intimation, however, in their epistle to Great Britain, of their disapproval of Friends uniting with any of the anti-slavery associations of the day. These passages in the epistles passed without remark or objection. The Meeting for Sufferings, of Rhode Island, has thus virtually undertaken to do, or at least to originate, all that is to be done, during the present year, by Friends of New England, to help the helpless, and to relieve the oppressed slaves. Sincerely do I desire, that it may not incur the responsibility of neglecting so solemn a charge. I subsequently met, on board the steamer in which we left Newport, many members of this body; with one of whom I had some conversation, in the presence of other Friends, to whom I felt it right to state, that the declarations of sympathy for the slaves, in the epistles which had been sent out, were stronger, in my judgment, than was justified by any thing which had been expressed, or had been manifested, in the Yearly Meeting. This conviction I yet retain. I afterwards obtained some authentic extracts from the laws of Rhode Island, affecting the people of color, and under which slavery is very distinctly recognized and sanctioned, even in this free State. I felt it my duty to forward a copy of these to the "Meeting for Sufferings," accompanied by the following letter:—

"To the Meeting for Sufferings of New England

Yearly Meeting of Friends.

"On passing through Providence, from the Yearly Meeting at Rhode Island, a solicitor of that place kindly furnished me with the annexed extracts from the laws of the State of Rhode Island. I thought it best to send a copy to you, as it is probable some members of your meeting may not be aware of their precise nature; and it is a source of regret to me, and I know it will be so to my friends in England, to know that in the State in which your Yearly Meeting is held, slavery is fully legalized, if the slaves are the property of persons not actually citizens of that place;—the most odious distinctions of color also remain on the statute book, including one (Section 10, No. 2,) which is a disgrace to any civilized community. I may add, that two very respectable solicitors in Providence expressed their decided opinion, that if Friends heartily promoted the repeal of these obnoxious laws, which throw all the moral influence of the State on the side of slavery, it might easily be accomplished. I cannot but hope the subject will receive your prompt attention.

"Truly your friend,

"JOSEPH STURGE."

To soften the impression which I fear the preceding detail will give, I may remark, that I am convinced, from extensive private communication with Friends in New England, that there is yet among them much genuine anti-slavery feeling, especially where the deadening commercial intercourse with the South does not operate; and though, at present, with some bright individual exceptions, this is a talent for the most part hidden or unemployed, I trust that many faithful laborers in this great cause will yet be found among them.

During our stay in Rhode Island, we twice visited Dr. Channing, at his summer residence, a few miles from Newport. The delicacy which ought ever to protect unreserved social intercourse, forbids me to enrich my narrative with any detail of his enlightened and comprehensive sentiments; yet I cannot but add, that, widely differing from him as I do, on many important points, I was both deeply interested and instructed by his modest candor and sincerity, and by the spirit of charity with which he appeared habitually to regard those of opposite opinions. Our conversation embraced various topics. I may be allowed to mention, that he highly approved of Judge Jay's suggestion for the promotion of permanent international peace. He also made a practical suggestion on the anti-slavery movement, which I trust will be acted on—That petitions should be sent to Congress, praying that the free States should be relieved from all direct or indirect support of slavery. As the South has loudly complained of Northern interference, this will be taking the planters on their own ground.

Sixth Month, (June) 19th.—We went on to New Bedford, where, the next day, we called on a number of persons friendly to abolition, and met a large party of them the same evening, at the house of a Friend. A public meeting for worship was appointed during our stay, at the request of a minister of the Society of Friends from Indiana, which we attended. I had the pleasure of witnessing the colored part of the audience, placed on a level, and sitting promiscuously with the white, the only opportunity I had of making such an observation in the United States; as, on ordinary occasions, the colored people rarely attend Friends' meetings. One of the waiters at our hotel told me he had escaped from slavery some years before. The idea of running away had been first suggested to his mind, by reflecting on his hard lot, being over-worked, and kept without a sufficiency of food, and cruelly beaten, while his owner was living in luxury and idleness, on the fruits of his labor. He had been flogged for merely speaking to one of his master's visitors, in reply to a question, because it was suspected he had divulged matter that his master did not wish the stranger to know.

On the 21st, we arrived at Boston, and stopped at the Marlborough hotel. One of the first things noticed by a visitor to the States is the number and extent of the hotels, almost all of which are on the principle of the English boarding houses. Besides the number of casual visitors in a population which travels from place to place, perhaps more than any other in the world, the hotels are the permanent homes of a numerous and important class of unmarried men, engaged in business, and often indeed of young married persons, who choose to avoid expense and the cares of housekeeping. At many, if not most of the hotels, cleanliness, regularity, and order, pervade all the arrangements, and as much comfort is to be found as is compatible with throng and publicity. Still the domestic charm of private life is wanting, and its absence renders the system of constant residence most uncongenial to English habits and feelings. An unsocial reserve lies on the surface of English character, and the love of privacy, or at least of a retirement which can be closed and expanded at will, is an extensive and deep-seated feeling. Yet the Anglo-American, even of the purest descent, has early lost the latter characteristic, while he often retains the first unimpaired. What law governs the hereditary transmission of such traits? Several first rate hotels in New England are strictly on the temperance plan, and among them is the Marlborough, in Boston, the second in extent of business in this important city, and which makes up from one hundred to two hundred beds. No intoxicating liquor of any kind can be had in the house. Printed notices are also hung up in the bed rooms, that it is the established rule to take in no fresh company and to receive no accounts on the first day of the week, and the cooking and other preparations are as much as possible performed before hand, that the servants may enjoy the day of rest, and partake of the moral and Spiritual benefit of a weekly pause from the whirl and turmoil of secular engagements.

I had scarcely ventured to hope that I should ever witness a large hotel like this, conducted on such principles; but having now seen it, it adds additional strength to my conviction, that in proportion as Christianity is carried out in common life, in the same proportion is the lost happiness of man recovered. Too many in the present day, who are not behind-hand in profession, keep their principles more for show than use. They acknowledge the purity of them, and have some faint perception of their moral beauty, but secretly believe, and sometimes, openly avow them to be impracticable in the present state of the world. They who exhibit proof of the contrary, are benefactors to their fellow men; and among these, justly deserves to be classed Nathaniel Rogers, the proprietor of the Marlborough Hotel, in Boston.

We called upon several of our anti-slavery friends on the day of our arrival, and in the evening, took tea with a number of those who approve of the proceedings of the London Convention, and who concur in the principles of the British and Foreign Anti-Slavery Society. The subjects discussed were the time and place of a future convention of the friends of the slave of different nations. London was unanimously approved as the place, and the preponderance of sentiment was in favor of 1842 as the time.

On the 22d we went on to Lynn. Here are a very considerable number of the Society of Friends, who are desirous of taking part in active anti-slavery exertion, when they can do so without compromise of principle. It is greatly to be regretted that in this vicinity, a few individuals, formerly members of our religious society, have embraced, in connection with their abolition views, the doctrines of non-resistance, or non-government, in church and state, and thus greatly added to the difficulties in the way of efficient action on the part of consistent members; but whatever may be the errors and indiscretions of these individuals, they furnish no valid excuse for the apathy and inaction on the part of "Friends," nor lessen, in the slightest degree, their responsibility for the firm and faithful maintenance of our Christian testimony against oppression. We proceeded, the same evening, to Amesbury, where the family of my friend and companion John G. Whittier reside, in whose hospitable and tranquil retreat we remained till the 25th. Here I found myself in a manufacturing district, and paid a visit to a large woollen mill, and was much pleased with the cleanliness and order displayed, and with the evident comfort and prosperity of the working people, who are chiefly young women, none of whom are admitted under sixteen years of age. Any person given to intoxication would be instantly discharged. All the manufactories in this place are joint-stock companies, and the mills are worked by water power, of which there is an abundant supply.

I had agreed, on my return to Boston, to meet my abolition friends at a tea party, and found an entertainment provided from the Marlborough Hotel, in a large room adjoining one of the chapels, on a scale of great profusion, a little to my disappointment, as I had anticipated one of a social rather than of a public character, though I could not but feel the kindness which it was intended to manifest. Charles Stewart Renshaw, from Jamaica, was opportunely present, and his information on the state of that Island added much interest to the evening, the proceedings of which, I hope, gave pretty general satisfaction. In condescension to my wish, my valued friend, Nathaniel Colver, suggested to the company to dispense with the usual form of public prayer, and substitute an interval of silence, after the reading of a portion of scripture, which was kindly complied with.

Before leaving Boston, I had a long interview with William Lloyd Garrison. His view of "women's rights" is so far a matter of conscience with him, as to be made an indispensable term of union; yet though widely differing on this, and other important points, we parted, I trust, as we met, on personally friendly terms; and certainly on my part with a desire to promote a spirit of forbearance, and with a deeper and stronger conviction that the friends of the bleeding and oppressed slave, should not spend their strength in unprofitable contention upon points in regard to which both parties claim to act conscientiously, while the common cause requires their undivided energies.

On the 28th I left Boston for the beautiful town of Worcester, about forty miles distant, on the principal line of railway to New York, where I had the pleasure of visiting, at his own residence, my friend, Cyrus P. Grosvenor, one of the delegates to the Anti-Slavery Convention last year. There are here a considerable number of sincere abolitionists, of whom we met a small company in the evening, in a room used as the Friends' meeting house. I gave them a brief account of the state of the anti-slavery cause in other parts of the world. In company with John M. Earle, editor of one of the Worcester papers, with whom I had formed a previous acquaintance at the Yearly Meeting, I also called on the Governor of the State of Massachusetts, who resides in this place. We had some friendly conversation, but he seemed cautious on the subject of abolition. The temperance cause in Worcester has made so much progress that at the three largest and best hotels, which make up nearly one hundred beds each, no intoxicating liquor of any kind is sold. A people thus willing to carry out their convictions, to the sacrifice of prejudice, appetite, and apparent self-interest, cannot long remain a nation of slave-holders. In common with the rest of New England, this town is remarkable for the number, size, and beauty of its places of worship. I calculated, with the aid of a well-informed inhabitant, that if the entire population were to go to a place of worship, at the same hour, in the same day, there would be ample accommodation, and room to spare. Yet here there is no compulsory tax to build churches, and maintain ministers. By the efficacy of the voluntary principle alone is this state of things produced.

My dear friend, John G. Whittier returned home from Worcester on account of increased indisposition, while I proceeded alone to New York. The journey from Boston to the latter city is a remarkably pleasant one. Leaving Boston at four in the afternoon, we proceed on one of the best railways in the States, at the rate of upwards of twenty miles an hour, through a very beautiful and generally well cultivated country, to the city of Norwich, in the State of Connecticut, where the train arrives about eight in the evening, and the passengers immediately embark on a handsome steamer, for New York, enjoying, as long as daylight lasts, the fine scenery on the banks of the Thames. The night I went was moonlight; and, after long enjoying the coolness of the evening on deck, the company retired to their berths, and arrived at New York at the seasonable hour of six the following morning.

I remained in New York until the 7th of the Seventh Month (July). My friends, William Shotwell and wife, had left the city during the hot months, but very kindly placed their town house at my service, and I found the retirement thus at my command both refreshing and very serviceable, in enabling me to bring up arrears of writing. During this interval, I spent one very pleasant day with Theodore and Angelina Grimke Weld, and their sister, Sarah Grimke, who reside on a small farm, a few miles from Newark. To the great majority of my readers these names need no introduction; yet, for the benefit of the few, I will briefly allude to their past history. When the American Anti-Slavery Society was formed, in 1833, Theodore D. Weld was at the Lane Seminary, near Cincinnati, Ohio. He was unable to attend on that occasion, but wrote a letter, declaring his entire sympathy with its object. Soon after, through the influence and exertions of himself and Henry B. Stanton, a large majority of the students at Lane Seminary, comprising several slave-holders and sons of slave-holders, became members of an Anti-Slavery Society. The Faculty opposed the formation of this society, and finally expelled its members from the seminary. For two or three years after, Theodore Weld was engaged in anti-slavery effort, principally in the States of Ohio and New York. His voice failed at last, and for several years he was unable to address a public assembly. Angelina Grimke Weld, and her sister, Sarah Grimke, were natives of South Carolina, the daughters of a distinguished Judge of that State; for several years they resided in Philadelphia. Having long felt a deep interest in the condition of the slaves, in the year 1837 they, in accordance with what they believed to be a sense of religious duty, visited New York and New England, to plead the cause of those, with whose sorrows, degradation, and cruel sufferings, they had been familiar in their native State. They are evidently women of superior endowments, kind-hearted and energetic, and still retain something of the warmth and fervor of character peculiar to the South.

Few, even of the well informed abolitionists of England, have an adequate idea of the extent, variety, and excellence of the anti-slavery literature of the United States, or of the amount of intellectual power which has been willingly consecrated to this service. Of the cause itself, with all its exigencies, we may adopt, in a yet more limited sense, the sentiment of the Christian poet, on the transient nature of all sublunary things,

"These, therefore, are occasional, and pass."

The time approaches when the shackles of the slave will fall off—when his suffering and despairing cry will be no more heard. Slavery itself is a temporary exigency; but its removal has called, and will yet call forth, works bearing the impress of intellectual supremacy, which will be embodied in the permanent literature of the age, and will contribute to raise the character, and to extend the reputation, of that literature. The names of Channing, Jay, Child, Green, and Pierpont, are already their own passport to fame. Other names might be mentioned; but, one instance excepted, selection might be invidious. That exception is Theodore D. Weld, whose palm of superiority few would be disposed to contest. His principal works are, "The Bible against Slavery;" "Power of Congress over Slavery in the District of Columbia;" and "Slavery as it is."

All his writings are marked by varied excellence; yet their chief characteristic is an irresistible and overwhelming power of argument. Although brief and compressed in style, he exhausts his subject; and his two principal works, though on warmly controverted topics, have never been replied to. He would be a bold antagonist who should enter the lists against him: he would be a yet bolder ally who should attempt to go over the same ground, or to do better what has been done so well.

One of the most voluminous and popular writers that ever lived, observed to a friend, "that he was more proud of his compositions for manure, than of any other compositions with which he had any concern." My friend, has the same love of rural occupations, and has found severe manual labor essential for the recovery of health, broken by labor of another kind. I found him at work on his farm, driving his own wagon and oxen, with a load of rails. When he had disposed of his freight, we mounted the wagon, and drove to his home. Two or three of his fellow-students at the Lane Seminary arrived about the same time, and we spent the day in agreeable, and, I trust, profitable intercourse. In the household arrangements of this distinguished family, Dr. Graham's dietetic system is rigidly adopted, which excludes meat, butter, coffee, tea, and all intoxicating beverages. I can assure all who may be interested to know, that this Roman simplicity of living does not forbid enjoyment, when the guest can share with it the affluence of such minds as daily meet at their table. The "Graham system," as it is called, numbers many adherents in America, who are decided in its praise.

My friends, Theodore D. and Angelina Weld, and Sarah Grimke, sympathize, to a considerable extent, with the views on "women's rights," held by one section of abolitionists; yet they deeply regret that this, or any other extraneous doctrine, should have been made an apple of discord; and, since the rise of these unhappy divisions, they have held aloof from both the anti-slavery organizations, though, as among the most able and successful laborers in the field, they may justly be accounted allies by each party. Difference of opinion on these points did not, for a moment, interrupt the pleasure of our intercourse; and I could not but wish, that those, of whatever party, who are accustomed to judge harshly of all who cannot pronounce their "shibboleth," might be instructed by the candid, charitable, and peace-loving deportment of Theodore D. Weld.

During my visit to New York, I became acquainted with many who were deeply interested in the abolition cause, not a few of whom were members of my own religious society. Among these, I may particularly mention my venerable friends, Richard Mott and Samuel Parsons. I paid a second visit to the residence of the latter at Flushing, but regret to say, I found him too unwell to enjoy company.[A] His sons are anxiously desirous of furthering the abolition cause on every suitable occasion. One evening I spent with a respectable minister, who is a man of color, and who assured me that most of the intelligent persons of his class in New York approve of the course pursued by the late Convention in London, and the Committee of the British and Foreign Anti-Slavery Society. I saw at his house a man who had purchased his freedom for twelve hundred dollars, intending to remain in the same State, but, as in a precisely similar case already noticed, he afterwards found he had no alternative but to emigrate, leaving his still enslaved family behind him, or to be again sold into slavery himself, under the laws enacted to drive out free people of color. He was trying to raise the large sum of fourteen hundred dollars, to purchase his wife and four children.

A: This illness terminated fatally. One of his intimate friends in this country, has favored me with the following communication respecting him. "Samuel Parsons had been from early life, a warm friend to the African race; his love of peace rendered him at the first accessible to prejudice against the American Anti-Slavery Society, through the misrepresentations respecting its violent and rash measures; which misrepresentations it was much more easy to believe than to investigate. Yet his interest for the negro and colored population of the United States continued, and he extended acts of protection and kindness towards them, whenever opportunity for it was afforded. In the Eleventh Month, last year, I find the following paragraph in one of his letters to us, viz. 'Though sensible that I am drawing towards the close of time, I cannot avoid taking a deep interest in the moral reformation, relative to slavery and intemperance, which is progressing in the earth; my son Robert and I look at these publications as they appear, with deep solicitude. The proceedings of the Anti-Slavery Convention of the world, and its movements, are of great moment to the whole civilized world. The anti-slavery cause, has not, I fear, advanced much the last year; the separation in the National Society, and the truckling to the South of the politicians of both sides, during the late Presidential election, has for a time marred the work; but the anti-slavery banner of a third party is still displayed, and it will probably continue to nominate till it seriously influences the elections. In the mean time, the individual States, one after another, are freeing the colored people from part of their civil disabilities. A hard battle is to be fought, but mighty is truth, and must prevail.'"

"The fourth of July," the anniversary of the independence of the United States, fell this year on the first day of the week, and was therefore celebrated the day following. It is still marked by extravagant demonstrations of joy, and often disgraced by scenes of intemperance and demoralization. The better part of the community wisely counteract the evil, to a great extent, by holding, on the same day, temperance meetings, school examinations, opening their places of worship, et cet. I accompanied my friend Lewis Tappan to attend an anti-slavery meeting at Newark, in which Theodore Weld was expected to take a part for the first time after an interval of five years' discontinuance of public speaking. Several years before, he had been carried away by the stream in crossing a river, and had very narrowly escaped drowning. This accident caused an affection of the throat, and eventually disqualified him for public labor except with the pen, to which, though deemed a great loss at the time by his fellow-laborers in the anti-slavery cause, we probably owe the invaluable works before referred to. It was on the same anniversary, five years ago, that he had spoken last, a circumstance to which he made a touching allusion: he spoke very impressively for more than half an hour without serious inconvenience, and I hope it may please Providence to restore his ability to plead, as he was wont to do with great power, for the cause of the oppressed.

In the afternoon there was a public examination of the scholars belonging to the place of worship in which the preceding meeting was held, and in connection with this a little incident occurred, which may serve to illustrate the state of public feeling. Newark, from its extensive trade with the south, is much under pro-slavery influence. But the congregation of this chapel are generally anti-slavery, and have several colored children in their school. One of these, a little black girl, was qualified to take part in the public examination; but this, in the estimation of some of the parents of white scholars, and several even of the trustees, could not be borne. Others, on the contrary, resolved to battle with the prejudice of caste, and to call for her, if she were not brought forward; and, finally, I suppose, by way of compromise, she was brought on the platform to recite alone, after the little scholars who could rejoice in the aristocratic complexion had performed their parts, without suffering the indignity of a public association with a colored child. Even this was, however, considered a victory by the anti-prejudice party.

I left on the seventh for Niagara, being desirous to see the celebrated Falls, and to visit some friends living in the western part of this State, as well as to find relief from the oppressive and tropical heat. I hoped also to fall in with my friends and fellow laborers, J. and M. Candler, who had gone with a party in the same direction. I need not describe a route so often traversed by Europeans. One of its agreeable incidents was an accidental meeting with John Curtis, of Ohio, on his way, on a free trade mission, to Great Britain, from motives which I believe to be disinterested and philanthropic. His labors, which are principally intended to show the evils of our taxes upon food, will not be in vain; though he will find many in England, as I found in America, who have no ear for truth when it opposes their prejudices or imaginary self-interest. He gave me a most cheering account of the march of abolition in Ohio, and said he had lately attended a meeting held at the invitation of the abolitionists, on the 5th of July, at which there were three thousand persons, who had come to the place of meeting in nine hundred vehicles of different kinds. He said he had never witnessed a more enthusiastic meeting. Another gentleman and his wife made themselves known to me, in the railway carriage, as warm abolitionists, and spoke favorably of the prospects of the cause in this part of the State of New York. The gentleman said he had lately had a discussion with a deacon of a church he attended, who defended the admission of slave-holders to the communion. On being asked, however, whether he would admit sheep-stealers, he acknowledged this was not so great a crime as man-stealing, and pleaded no further in favor of church-fellowship with slave-holders.

The journey from New York to the Falls of Niagara, a distance of 480 miles, is performed in about forty-eight hours, and when the railway communication is further completed, and the speed raised to the standard of the best English lines, it will probably be accomplished in less than thirty hours. The railway passed for many miles through the original forest, in which I observed very lofty trees, but none of an extraordinary girth. In many places the ground was crowded with fallen trees, in every stage of decay. I found my friends at the Eagle Hotel, at Niagara, where I remained till the twelfth, enjoying with them the views and scenery of "the Falls," a spectacle of nature in her grandest aspect, which mocks the limited capacity of man to conceive or to describe.

On the eleventh, being the first day of the week, we held a meeting for worship, at our hotel, and were joined by an Irish lady and her three daughters, who had been living here some months. This lady told me she was present when M'Leod was arrested in this hotel. From all I have been able to learn, there are a number of reckless men on both sides the border line, who are anxious to foment war for the sake of plunder; but the great bulk of the American people, I am persuaded, are for peace, and especially for peace with England, a feeling which time is strengthening.

On the twelfth, our whole party left for Buffalo, by railway, getting a transient view of Lake Ontario before entering the city. Here we parted company, they proceeding to Toronto, by steam packet, and I to Syracuse by coach. The American vehicle of this name, carries nine inside passengers on three cross seats. It is hung on leather springs, so as to be fitted to maintain the shocks of a corduroy road. Wishing to see the country, I mounted the box, by the side of the coachman, but at times had some difficulty in retaining my seat. The value of land in this part of the country, when cleared and in cultivation, I understood to be from thirty to fifty dollars per acre. A large breadth of wheat is grown, of which the yield is generally good; but this year there will be, in many cases, a short crop, from the extreme drought in the two preceding months. I went forward from Syracuse to Rochester by railway, and thence, with the exception of twelve miles by coach, by the same conveyance to Auburn, where we arrived at two o'clock in the morning. One of my fellow-passengers had been a soldier in the so-called "patriot" army, which enlisted against Santa Anna, in the revolt of Texas. He stated, that some planters were emigrating from Mississippi, with as many as two hundred "hands," (slaves,) and plainly said, it was intended to plant the Anglo-Saxon flag on the walls of Mexico. If half what he asserted was true, the worst apprehensions of the abolitionists are too likely to be realized by the Texian revolution, and the establishment of a new slave-holding power on the vast territory claimed by that piratical band of robbers, and forming the South-western frontier of the United States.

At Auburn I paid a visit to the celebrated State Prison, and though, from want of time to call upon a gentleman in the city for whom I had a letter, I was unprovided with an introduction, I was politely admitted by the superintendent, who refused to receive the fee customarily paid by visitors, when he found, from the entry of my name and address, I was an Englishman. I passed through the different workshops, in which nearly all handicraft trades are carried on, and very superior work is frequently executed by the prisoners. Besides other less complicated machines, one complete locomotive engine has been constructed within these walls. As the system of discipline adopted here is the same as at Sing Sing, also in this State, I defer for the present, any remarks upon its character and success.

I left Auburn, in a hired carriage, for Skaneateles, to pay a visit to my friend, James Cannings Fuller. He has a rich farm of 156 acres, with a good house upon it, about a quarter of a mile west of the large and flourishing village of Skaneateles, which overlooks a beautiful lake of the same name, sixteen miles in length, and in some places two miles wide. James C. Fuller left England about seven years ago, and has carried his abolition principles with him to his adopted country. He told me that there had been a great change for the better in the public mind since his residence in this neighborhood. Abolitionism was once so unpopular, that he has been mobbed four times in his own otherwise quiet village. On one occasion he was engaged in a public discussion on slavery, and a mob so much disturbed the meeting, by the throwing of shot, and yells the most discordant the human voice could make, that his opponent moved an adjournment, and afterwards accompanied him on his way to his own house, with many other persons, as a body-guard. They were followed by a large number of other persons, who attempted to throw him down, and were very free in the use of missiles and mud; the mob were so vociferous, that their shoutings were heard two and a half miles distant, many persons leaving their houses to endeavor to ascertain the cause of such an uproar. On James C. Fuller's entering his house, the mob surrounded his parlor windows, and these would, most probably, have been smashed in pieces, and the building defaced, had not one of the assailants been seized with a fit, and in that state conveyed into James C. Fuller's parlor, where he lay insensible for three quarters of an hour. This sudden seizure diverted the attention of the mob from my friend and his property to their own companion.

James C. Fuller informed me that mobs in America are generally, if not always, instigated by "persons of property and standing;" and the most blameable, in his case, were not those who yelled, et cet., et cet., but others who prompted the outrage. Happily this state of things is now altered: as much order and decorum, with fixed attention, is now witnessed at an abolition lecture as at any other lecture; and a colored man can now collect a larger meeting in Skaneateles than a white man, and the behavior of the audience is attentive, kind, and respectful. My friend, John Candler, who was here a fortnight before me, collected a large assembly to hear his account of the effects of emancipation in our West India Islands, and many expressed themselves much gratified with his narrative.

Being anxious to proceed to Peterboro', to visit Gerrit Smith, I accepted James C. Fuller's kind offer to take me in his carriage. The distance is nearly fifty miles, and the roads were, in some parts, very rough; but they intersect a fine country. Much wheat is grown in many places, and here the crop appeared generally good.

Having started rather late in the afternoon, we were benighted before we reached Manlius Square, where we lodged. Though my kind friend would not permit me to pay my share of the bill, yet, to gratify my curiosity, he communicated the particulars of the charge, as follows: Half a bushel of oats for the horses, 25 cents; supper for two persons, 25 cents; two beds, 25 cents; hay and stable-room for the two horses, 25 cents; total, one dollar, or about 4s. 2d. sterling.

We arrived at Peterboro' early the following morning, where I remained till the sixteenth, at the house of Gerrit Smith. He was once a zealous supporter of the Colonization Society, but when convinced of the evil character and tendency of that scheme, he withdrew from it, and became a warm and able advocate of the immediate abolition of slavery. He is one of the few Americans who have inherited large property from their parents, and he has contributed to this cause with princely munificence. Gerrit Smith and Arthur Tappan have, each on one or more occasions given single donations of ten thousand dollars (upwards of two thousand pounds sterling) to promote anti-slavery objects. His wife, Ann Carroll Smith, who is a native of Maryland, and his daughter, an only child, share in my valued friend's ardent sympathy for the sufferings of the slave. During my stay, he received a letter from Samuel Worthington, of Mississippi, who held in slavery Harriet Russell. Harriet was formerly the slave of Ann Carroll Smith, having been given to her when they were both children. Ann C. Smith was but twelve years old when, with her father's family, she removed from Maryland to New York. Harriet was left in Maryland. Shortly after Ann C. Smith's marriage, and when she was about eighteen years of age, her brother, James Fitzhugh, of Maryland, wrote to ask her to give Harriet to him, stating that she was, or was about to be, married to his slave, Samuel Russell. She consented: and her brother soon after emigrated to Kentucky, taking Samuel and Harriet with him. After this Samuel and Harriet were repeatedly sold.

Some years ago, Gerrit and Ann C. Smith having become deeply impressed with the great sin of slavery, were anxious to learn what had become of Harriet. But they did not succeed in ascertaining her residence, until the letter received during my visit informed them of it, and which also stated that Harriet and her husband were living, and that they had several children. The price put upon the family was four thousand dollars.

James C. Fuller having kindly offered to go into Kentucky, where Samuel Worthington then resided, to negotiate with him for the purchase of the family, G. Smith gladly accepted the offer of one so well qualified for this undertaking. James C. Fuller succeeded in purchasing the family for three thousand five hundred dollars, exclusive of his travelling expenses, and those of the slave family, which amounted to about two hundred and eighty dollars. He has published a very interesting account of his journey, in a letter addressed to myself, from which some extracts are given in the Appendix.[A] Eighteen months ago, G. and A.C. Smith united with other children of her father, the late Col. Fitzhugh, in purchasing, at the cost of four thousand dollars, the liberty of ten slaves, who, or their parents, were among the slaves of Colonel Fitzhugh when he left Maryland. I have recently learned that they are negotiating the purchase of the liberty of other slaves, who formerly belonged to Colonel Fitzhugh. It is nearly seven years since Gerrit Smith and his family adopted the practice of total abstinence from all slave produce, thus additionally manifesting the sincerity of those convictions which have induced him to contribute so largely of his wealth both to the anti-slavery funds, and for the liberation of all slaves with which his family property had the most remote connection.

A: See Appendix I.

Here, I had some expectation of again meeting my friend, James G. Birney, who was gone on a journey to Ohio, and is well known to English abolitionists, by his able assistance at the great Anti-Slavery Convention, as one of its vice-presidents, and by his subsequent labors, which are thus acknowledged, on his return to America, by the Committee of the British and Foreign Anti-Slavery Society:—

"That this committee are deeply sensible of the services rendered to the anti-slavery cause by their esteemed friend and coadjutor, James Gillespie Birney, Esq., whilst in this country, in a course of laborious efforts, in which his accurate and extensive information, his wise and judicious counsels, and his power of calm and convincing statement, have become eminently conspicuous.

"The committee also take the present occasion to record their sense of his zealous and disinterested labors in defence of the rights of outraged humanity in his own country, during a period of great excitement and opposition: and of the proof he has given of his sincerity, in having twice manumitted the slaves that had come into his possession; a noble example, which they trust others will not be slow to follow."

Whilst J.G. Birney was in this country, in addition to his arduous labors, in addressing large assemblies in many of the cities of the United Kingdom, he prepared and published his excellent work, "The American Churches the Bulwark of American Slavery," which is eminently deserving of the attentive perusal of all Christian readers. The estimation in which James G. Birney is held by American abolitionists, is marked by his having been twice unanimously selected by the "Liberty Party," as a candidate for the Presidential chair.

I found G. Smith as much interested in the subject of temperance, as in that of slavery. No person in the whole of the township in which he lives is licensed to sell drams. For an innkeeper to sell a glass of spirits, or even of strong beer, is illegal, and exposes him to a heavy fine.

The next morning I left early for Utica, where I had the pleasure of again meeting the friends I had parted from at Buffalo, with whom I paid a visit to the Oneida Institute, about two miles from Utica. This college was the first in the United States to throw open its doors to students, irrespective of color. It was also one of the earliest institutions to combine manual labor with instruction. The principle is adopted partly from a motive of economy, but principally because intellectual vigor is believed to depend on bodily health, and that these can be best secured and preserved by exercise and labor, especially out of door and agricultural employments. The labor of the students defrays a considerable part of the expense of their support, but as the severe pressure of the times has limited the means of many liberal benefactors of Oneida, the establishment, which usually comprises one hundred young men, is now limited to about one-third of the number. Several of these are colored. The Oberlin Institute in Ohio is on a much larger scale than this, and is on an equally liberal footing with regard to color. I much regretted being unable, from want of time, to comply with the urgent request of my friend, Wm. Dawes and others, to visit this important and interesting establishment. The number of students at Oberlin last year was five hundred and sixty, including those in the department for females.

I was much pleased to have the opportunity of becoming further acquainted with the President of Oneida, Beriah Green, and with his friend, Wm. Goodell, who resides in the neighborhood. Their names will be reverenced by the abolitionists of America as long as the memory of anti-slavery efforts shall survive. Before we left, we had an opportunity of meeting the students together, who appeared much interested with my friend John Candler's details of the results of emancipation in Jamaica. I was disappointed in not finding at home Alvan Stewart, one of the ablest and most zealous friends of the Anti-Slavery cause; but Beriah Green kindly accompanied me to call upon several of their abolition friends in the city.

My limited time prevented my paying a visit to Henry B. Stanton, who was residing not far from Utica, and whose acquaintance I had the pleasure of making in England. He also will be remembered for his able assistance at the Convention, and by his eloquent addresses at public meetings in this country. The following record of his services is made by the Committee of the British and Foreign Anti-Slavery Society:—

"That this Committee, in taking leave of their friend and fellow-laborer in the cause of universal emancipation, Henry Brewster Stanton, Esq., record their high estimate of the valuable services rendered by him to that cause, whilst in Great Britain, by his eloquent and powerful advocacy; and, in tendering him their thanks, they express their sincere desire for his success in the great work to which he has devoted himself."

The name of Henry B. Stanton previously occurs in conjunction with that of Theodore D. Weld, as having left Lane Seminary with many other students, rather than be silent on the abolition question: becoming from that time a strenuous and powerful anti-slavery advocate.

I proceeded in the evening to Albany, and thence to New York the next morning; where I remained from the 17th to the 26th instant, and, during this time, I put in circulation the following address:—

"To the Members of the Religious Society of Friends in the United States of America.

"Dear Friends,—Having for many years believed it my duty to devote a considerable portion of my time and attention to the promotion of the abolition of slavery and the slave-trade, I have acted in cordial co-operation with the British and Foreign Anti-Slavery Society since its formation. The principles of that Society may be briefly explained by the following extract from its constitution: 'That so long as slavery exists, there is no reasonable prospect of the annihilation of the slave-trade, and of extinguishing the sale and barter of human beings: that the extinction of slavery and the slave-trade will be attained most effectually by the employment of those means which are of a moral, religious, and pacific character: and that no measures be resorted to by this society in the prosecution of their objects, but such as are in entire accordance with these principles.'

"My visit to this country had reference, in a great measure, to the objects for which this society was established; but, although I left my native land with the general approbation and full unity of my friends, they concurred with me in opinion, that any official document, beyond a certificate from 'my monthly meeting,' expressive of sympathy with my engagement, might rather obstruct than promote the end I had in view. I was desirous of a personal interchange of sentiment with many of the abolitionists in this land, upon matters having an important bearing upon our future exertions. The warm attachment which I have ever felt to the religious society with which I am connected, and the ready co-operation of its members with their Christian neighbors in promoting this cause in Great Britain, inclined me to embrace every suitable opportunity to communicate with Friends in this country. And I have been encouraged, not only by the great personal kindness I have received from them generally, but also by the lively interest expressed by most, on the subject of emancipation, wherever I have introduced it.

"A further acquaintance with Friends in the compass of the three or four 'Yearly Meetings,' in which my lot has been cast, and my inquiries respecting the state of the other Yearly Meetings, has convinced me that a large number of their most consistent members, including many aged and universally respected Friends, are desirous of embracing every right opening, both individually and collectively, for the promotion of the abolition cause. And while they are fully aware that there are reasons growing out of the existing state of things, which render great circumspection necessary, they can see no good ground for believing that the manner in which Friends of this country, of a former generation, labored for the liberation of the slave, was not under the guidance of the Spirit of truth.

"This is now the course pursued by Friends generally in England. That there may be no misapprehension as to the conduct of Friends, with regard to this subject, in Great Britain, I may mention, that I am the bearer of a document expressive of unity with my visit, signed by William Allen, Josiah Forster, William Forster, George Stacey, Samuel Fox, George W. Alexander, and Robert Forster, who declare themselves fellow members with myself of the British and Foreign Anti-Slavery Committee. This committee is composed of persons of various religious denominations, amongst whom it will be seen are many of the prominent members of our meeting for sufferings. Upon the list of delegates to the late Anti-Slavery Convention, in London, are the names of nearly one hundred well known Friends, including those of four who are, or have been clerks of the yearly meeting; and the present clerk of that meeting, my esteemed friend, George Stacey, took an active part, and rendered essential service in the Convention. The meeting house in Gracechurch Street was freely granted by Friends in London, who have charge of it, for the use of the Convention, and the concluding sittings of that body were held in it.

"In fact, Friends generally in England think it their duty to render every aid in their power to the anti-slavery cause, whether in their collective capacity, or individually uniting with their fellow-citizens, when they can do so without any compromise of our religious principles and testimonies. I speak more explicitly on this point, because I have ascertained with much concern, that there is an influential portion of the Society, including, I have no doubt, some sincere abolitionists, who have been so fearful that the testimonies of the Society might suffer by any union with others, that they have not only avoided such a co-operation themselves, but have dissuaded those of their brethren, who have believed it incumbent upon them to act otherwise; and in one 'Yearly Meeting,' at least, I have too much reason to fear they have tacitly, if not actively sanctioned the omission of the names of Friends on meeting appointments,—however consistent in their conduct, and concerned for the welfare of the society—simply because they have felt it their duty to act with persons of other denominations in promoting the abolition of slavery; thus, in appearance at least, throwing the whole weight and influence of the society, in its collective capacity, against a movement, which, although doubtless partaking of the imperfections attendant upon all human instrumentality, has already aroused the whole country to a sense of the wrongs of the slave, and secured to the nominally free colored citizens, in many of the States, rights of which they have been so long and so unjustly deprived.

"Though I can hardly expect that any thing from one entertaining my view of the subject, can have much weight with those Friends, who, with a full understanding of the heavy responsibility they were assuming, have discountenanced anti-slavery exertions, and the use of our meeting houses, even by consistent members, for the purpose of giving information on the subject:[A] yet, as it has occasioned me no small degree of anxiety, both in reference to the anti-slavery cause, and the Society of Friends itself, I believe I cannot return to my native land with peace of mind, without earnestly and affectionately pressing upon such Friends, the great importance of a careful examination of the ground which they have taken. Our unwearied adversary is sometimes permitted to lead us into the most fearful errors, when he assumes the appearance of an angel of light. And is there not great danger, in encouraging the young and inexperienced to suppose that the maintenance of any of our testimonies may be neglected, except when we feel a Divine intimation to uphold them, and may it not open the door to great laxity in our practice? While I fully believe that the true disciple of Christ will be favored with the immediate guidance of the Holy Spirit whenever it is needful to direct his steps; it appears to me especially important, that, in matters of self-sacrifice and conflicting with our worldly interest or reputation, we should guard against being deluded into a neglect of duty, by waiting for this direct Divine intimation, where the path of duty is obvious and clearly understood, and when testimonies are concerned, which we have long considered it our duty, on all occasions, to support. If, under such a view of the subject, we do believe it our duty to cease to act ourselves, and discourage our brethren from laboring in the cause of the slave; a close self-examination surely is needful, in order to ascertain if we are consistently carrying out the same principle in our daily walk in life—in our mercantile transactions—our investments of property—in our connection with public institutions,—and with political parties.

A: "It is right to state, that I was much encouraged by the lively expression of sympathy in the anti-slavery cause in the Yearly Meetings of Philadelphia and New York: that at the former place Friends opened a room at the meeting house for my friend John Candler to give some information on the subject, and at New York the large meeting house was not only readily granted to him and me for the same purpose, but the clerks of the Yearly Meeting kindly gave notice and invited Friends to attend."

"It should be borne in perpetual recollection, that we are in no small danger of shrinking from a faithful maintenance of those testimonies which are unpopular with the world, as well as of not seeing our own neglect of duty, while censuring the zeal or supposed indiscretion of others. Besides, if this good cause be really endangered by popular excitement, and the indiscretion of its imprudent advocates, the obligation of consistent Friends to be found at their posts, faithfully maintaining the testimony of truth on its behalf, is greatly increased; and it is under such circumstances that I think I have seen the peculiar advantage and protection to our young friends in England, of having their elder brethren with them, aiding them by their sympathy, as well as by their advice and counsel. I am persuaded that those who are called to occupy the foremost ranks in society cannot be too careful not to impose a burden upon tender consciences, by discouraging, either directly or indirectly, a course of conduct which is sanctioned by the precepts and examples of our Divine Master, lest they alienate from us some of His disciples, and thereby greatly injure the society they are so laudably anxious to 'keep unspotted from the world.'

"We are told, on the highest authority, that 'by their fruits' we are to judge of the laborers in the Christian vineyard; and, while I am fully aware of the greater difficulties in the way of emancipation here, as compared with Great Britain, I have been almost irresistibly led to contrast the difference in the results of the course pursued by Friends in the two countries. In America, during the last twenty-five years, it is evident that slavery and the slave-trade have greatly increased; and even where the members of our society are the most numerous and influential, the prejudice against color is as strong as in any part of the world,[A] and Friends themselves, in many places, are by no means free from this prejudice. In Great Britain, Friends, by society action, and by uniting with their fellow-countrymen, not only contributed, under Providence, in no small degree, to the passage of the act of 1834, for the abolition of slavery in the British West Indies; but, when it was found that the system of apprenticeship which this act introduced, was made an instrument of cruel oppression to the slaves, a renewal of similar labors for about twelve months, resulted in the complete emancipation of our colored brethren in those colonies.

A: "I should, I believe, do wrong to conceal the sorrow which I have felt that the scheme of African colonization, the great support of which, at the present time, appears to be hostility to anti-slavery efforts and an unchristian prejudice against color, still has the sympathy and the active aid of some members of our society."

"In closing this letter, I wish to address a few words to that numerous and valuable class of Friends, previously alluded to, with whom I deeply sympathize, who are only deterred from more active exertion by their reluctance to give dissatisfaction to those whom they respect. The sorrow which I feel, under the consideration that, in parting with many of you, we never probably shall meet again in mutability, is softened by the persuasion, that the difficulties by which you are surrounded are lessening, and that some who are now opposing you, will, ere long, join you in efforts, which shall remove from the minds, both of abolitionists and slave-holders, the belief so generally entertained, that the Society of Friends in this country are not earnestly engaged for the total and immediate abolition of slavery. No one regrets more than myself that any friends to the cause of abolition should connect other topics with it, which, however suitable to be discussed on their own merits, must necessarily interfere with this simple and momentous object. You are aware of some of the circumstances which may have led to the state of feeling, with many in our society, which we so much deplore. And it is my fervent desire that none of you, in any steps you may consider it your duty to take, may afford just cause of uneasiness, by any compromise of Christian principle, any improper harshness of language, or by the introduction of any subject not strictly belonging to the anti-slavery cause. Your situation is one of peculiar difficulty and delicacy. Both from a regard to your own religious society and the suffering slave, you have need to exercise great watchfulness, and to cultivate feelings of brotherly love and that 'charity which suffereth long, and is kind.' The beautiful example of John Woolman, in this respect, is worthy of your imitation. His labors were, for years, far less encouraged by the leading influences of society than your own at the present time; yet we find, in reading his invaluable journal, no traces of bitterness or uncharitable feeling.

"Finally, dear friends of all classes,—In thus freely addressing you, I have written, not only with a strong attachment to our religious society, but, I trust, under a feeling of a degree of that love, which is not confined to geographical boundaries, or affected by color or by clime. The prayer of my heart is, that each of you may be willing to be made instrumental, in the Divine Hand, in faithfully maintaining our Christian testimony against slavery; bearing in mind, that the labors of your ancestors have greatly increased your responsibility, by separating you from those influences which so deaden the feelings and harden the heart against the claims of our brethren in bonds. May these considerations, viewed in connection with the difficulties which obstruct the progress of emancipation in this land, stimulate you to increased exertion; and when you are summoned to the bar of that final tribunal, towards which we are all hastening, may you have the inexpressible consolation of reflecting, that you have performed all you could towards 'undoing the heavy burden and letting the oppressed go free.'

"I am, very sincerely,

"Your friend,
"JOSEPH STURGE."

"New York, Seventh Month 17th, 1841."

The above letter so fully embodies my view of the state of the Society in reference to the anti-slavery cause, that I shall think it needless, after a few general observations, again recur to this subject. I feel bound to acknowledge that this public mode of making my sentiments known was disapproved by some Friends; yet of all the objections that were made to the proceeding, none tended to impugn the accuracy of my representation of the existing state of things. This is approved by some, and deplored by others, but my statement has not been denied by any. In consequence of a remonstrance made to me on special grounds in the kindest and most Christian manner by two beloved friends, I felt called upon to subject my motives and conduct, in issuing such an address, to deliberate reconsideration; and the result was, that I not only felt myself clear of just censure, but that in no other way could I have discharged my duty according to my own interpretation of its dictates. Of other objectors, I may add, that simply to enumerate their reasons, stated to me in private conference, would be the severest public animadversion that could be made, either on the individuals themselves, or on the Society whose views they professed to represent.

In the present state of this great controversy, the abolitionists may justly say, "he that is not with us, is against us," while the pro-slavery party can witness, "he that is not against us, is on our side." Hence the praise bestowed on the neutrality of the Society of Friends by the great slave-holding senator, Henry Clay. Hence also the suspicious compliments of the late President Van Buren, the first act of whose administration was a pledge to refuse his signature to any bill for the abolition of slavery in the District of Columbia. I fear it is undeniable that in the last eight years the collective influence of the Society has been thrown into the pro-slavery scale, and this notwithstanding the existence of much diffused and passive sympathy and right feeling on behalf of the slave, in the breasts of probably a large majority of individual members. The abolitionists of the United States have been treated by too many influential Friends, as well as by the leading professors of other denominations, as a party whose contact is contamination; yet to a bystander it is plainly obvious that the true grounds of offence are not always those ostensibly alleged, but the activity, zeal, and success with which they have cleared themselves of participation in other men's sins, and by which they have condemned the passive acquiescence of a society making a high profession of anti-slavery principles. I do not intend to defend all the proceedings of the anti-slavery societies. That they have sometimes erred in judgment and action,—that they have had unworthy men among their members, I have little doubt. But, the same objections might have been raised to the old anti-slavery societies, in which the leading Friends of the United States took an active part with their neighbors of other denominations, and, with far greater force against the Colonization Society, which is patronized, even to this day, both by individual members and by at least one Meeting of Sufferings.[A] The causes that have produced the state of things I have attempted to describe, derive their origin, I believe, from one source—inaction. After the Society of Friends had purified itself from slave-holding, it gradually subsided into a state of rest, and finally lapsed into lethargy and indifference on this question. In the world we live in, evil is the quick and spontaneous growth, while good is the forced and difficult culture. Good principles can only be preserved bright, pure, and efficient, by watchful care and constant use; if laid aside, they rust and perish. These are the necessary effects of the fall of man by disobedience from that state of happiness and holiness in which he was formed by a beneficent Creator. In a state of inaction, Friends have been exposed to the influences of a corrupt public sentiment; they have, to a considerable extent, imbibed the prejudice against color, while some of them have been caught by the gilded bait of southern commerce.

A: See Appendix K.

In a former part of this work I have briefly alluded to that memorable reformation, which, in the latter part of the preceding century, purged the Society of Friends from the heinous sins of slave trading and holding slaves. This reformation in Great Britain, with perhaps a few individual exceptions, consisted merely in the adoption of new convictions, and the abandonment of lax opinions; but, on the American continent, it was sealed by the willing sacrifice of an immense amount of property. One can scarcely avoid looking back with regret to times when convictions of duty had such power, when Christian principle was carried out, whatever the cost. Then, indeed, was exhibited, by the American Friends, the fruit of a world-overcoming faith. It must be confessed that the present position of their descendants presents an unpleasing contrast; yet I trust, that from all I have written, the conclusion will be drawn, that I look forward to the future with hope; though it is a hope chastened with fear. Next to a fervent desire that slavery may be speedily abolished, it is one of the warmest wishes of my heart, that the "Society of Friends" in America, may be among the chiefly honored agents in accomplishing, in the wisdom and power of Jesus Christ, so great a work, thereby contributing to the fulfilment of the angelic prophecy of "Glory to God, and good will to man."

I subsequently visited, in company with a colored gentleman, one of the principal colored schools in New York, in which there were upwards of three hundred children present. All the departments appeared to be conducted, under colored teachers, with great order and efficiency, and the attainments of the higher classes were very considerable. On the whole, this school would bear comparison with any similar school for white children which I ever visited.

Having received from Great Britain the minutes of a special meeting of the Anti-Slavery Society, called to consider the time of holding a second General Convention, I met some of the friends of the cause in New York, together with John G. Whittier and Elizur Wright, of Boston, to obtain an interchange of their sentiments on the same subject. After considerable discussion, they unanimously concluded to leave the decision as to the time of holding a future Convention to the London Committee—the question of time being the summer of 1842 or 1843.

The numerous persons on whom I called, before leaving New York, concurred uniformly in the belief that public opinion was steadily, and somewhat rapidly advancing, in favor of emancipation, and that the prejudice against color was lessening.

The unanimity I found in the opinion that public feeling in favor of peace was continually strengthening, was very encouraging. All whom I consulted, approved of the suggestion of Judge Jay, already mentioned, though I had no suitable opportunity of obtaining the collective sentiments of the friends of peace in New York upon it.

The Secretary of the Vigilance Committee, an association existing in several of the Northern cities, formed to aid runaway slaves in escaping to a place of safety, as well as to protect the free colored people from kidnappers, informed me that the number of slaves who applied for assistance was constantly on the increase. He said that, only a few days before, a man, who was a preacher of the gospel, who was escaping to Canada, called upon him; and on being asked why he was fleeing from slavery, he exposed his naked back, lacerated with a recent flogging, and said that he had received that punishment for going to his place of worship.

On the evening of the 24th I went up the river Hudson to Sing Sing, in company with Lewis Tappan. Our object was to spend the next day, which was the first day of the week, in this celebrated state prison. We lodged at a quiet hotel, on an eminence above the village; and next morning, about eight o'clock, we went to the prison, where we were very kindly received by the superintendent, J.G. Seymour, and by the chaplain. Soon afterwards, we had the opportunity of seeing all the male prisoners, about seven hundred and fifty, in the chapel, when they were addressed by a minister of the Presbyterian persuasion, whom we had met on board the steamer, and whom Lewis Tappan had invited to be there. We were informed that about one-third of the prisoners were colored: these did not sit separate, but were intermixed with the rest. In general, however, the striking language of De Beaumont, a late French traveller in the United States, will be found true. "The prejudice against color haunts its victim wherever he goes,—in the hospitals where humanity suffers,—in the churches where it kneels to God,—in the prisons where it expiates its offences,—in the grave-yards where it sleeps the last sleep."

From hence we proceeded to the female department, where about eighty were assembled, some of whom seemed much affected by an address from my friend, Lewis Tappan. He told them he saw at least one present who had been a scholar in his colored Sabbath School at New York. The white women were placed in the front seats, and the colored behind them. We next went to the Sabbath School for the male prisoners, held in the chapel, where the attendance is general, though perfectly voluntary. Twenty-five of the best educated and most orderly prisoners are allowed to teach classes: the other teachers were officers of the prison, and other persons attracted hither by benevolent motives; and I was told the teachers selected among the convicts had not once been detected in the abuse of this privilege, by entering into conversation on other topics. On the breaking up of the school, Lewis Tappan addressed them, and I added a few words. We were kindly invited to dine with the matron. She mentioned one instance of complete reformation in a female, which was to be attributed she believed, under the Divine blessing, to the ministry of Joseph J. Gurney, who visited Sing Sing, in the course of his religious labors in the United States.

After dinner we were permitted to visit the male prisoners at their cells, list shoes being provided for us that we might walk along the galleries without noise. Those who wished to do so, were suffered to speak to us through their grated doors, in a low voice. A number embraced this opportunity; of the sincere repentance and reformation of some of whom, I could scarcely doubt. One prisoner, a man of color, appeared to enjoy a state of perfect happiness, under a sense of being at peace with his Maker. Another manifested such a feeling of his spiritual blessings, and especially of that change of heart he had been favored to experience, as scarcely to have a desire for his liberation, though his health was visibly sinking under the confinement, and there appeared little other prospect but that of his dying in the prison, as he had been condemned for ten years, of which three yet remained. Several were Englishmen, who were mostly under feigned names, keeping their real names secret, from a natural unwillingness to disgrace their families. Some of these were men of education, and communicated to me in confidence their family names. One referred to gentlemen standing deservedly high in the estimation of the British public, as well knowing him. Two or three of this class wept much, when speaking of their situation, and of the offences that had brought them there.

I gathered from the prisoners themselves that a great change had been introduced, both in the affairs and in the management of the prison, within the last eighteen months, by the present excellent superintendent and chaplain and their coadjutors, and with the happiest effects. The former system was one of brutal severity; now, without any relaxation of discipline, needless severity is discarded, and the floggings have been reduced nine-tenths, the great object being the reformation of the prisoners. One of these, speaking of the superintendent and chaplain, said: "there was not a prisoner in the jail, but rejoiced to hear the sound of their feet."

J.G. Seymour mentioned one of the English prisoners to me, whose heart had been softened, and his reformation commenced, through the kindness of his prosecutor, who had spent both time and money in endeavoring to procure his release. This statement was fully confirmed in an interesting conversation I had with the individual himself, who was subsequently permitted, as well as another Englishman, to send letters by me to their relations in this country.

An extract from the correspondence of one of my unfortunate fellow-countrymen, which I am permitted to make, will afford an interesting view of the internal administration of the Sing Sing prison, by one of its inmates. After alluding to the absolute monotony of prison life, he gives one day as a specimen of every day. "Monday morning, the large prison bell rings at five o'clock, when we all rise; half an hour after, we all go out to work, to our respective shops, till breakfast, the keepers all the time seated upon a high seat, overlooking—seeing that everything is ordered and going on in a proper manner: no talking allowed upon any occasion, or under any pretence whatever. When the breakfast-bell rings, we all go in to breakfast, each one to a separate room, (which are all numbered, one thousand in all;) every man's breakfast is ready for him in his room,—one pint of coffee, with plenty of meat, potatoes, and rye bread. After one hour, the prison opens again, and we work in a similar manner till twelve—dinner hour—when we go in again. Dinner is set ready as before,—an ample quantity of meat, potatoes, and bread, with a cup of water, (the best beverage in the world—would to God I had never drank any thing else, and I should not have been here;) one hour allowed for dinner, when we go out and work again till six o'clock, when we come in and are locked up for the night, with a large bowl of mush, (hasty pudding with molasses,) the finest food in the world, made from Indian meal. Thus passes each day of the week. Sundays we rise at the same hour; each man has a clean shirt given him in his room, then goes to the kitchen, brings his breakfast in with him, the same as before, and is locked up till eight, when Divine service is performed by a most worthy and able chaplain. After service, through the pious and benevolent efforts of Mr. Seymour, we have an excellent Sabbath School. Bible classes, where from three to four hundred attend, about half to learn to read, and the others to receive instruction in the way to attain everlasting life, under the immediate inspection of Mr. Seymour; and I am happy to say, that the greatest attention is paid by scholars of both classes: many, very many, know how to appreciate the value of these privileges, and benefit by them accordingly. Mr. Seymour has obtained a large library for us, and one of the prisoners is librarian. At eleven o'clock we are locked up for the day, with an extra allowance of food and water sufficient. The librarian and an assistant are left open, to distribute the books; that is to go to each man's cell, get the book he had the previous Sunday, and give him another in exchange, generally supplying them with a small tract, of which we mostly have a great plenty."

A large proportion of the prisoners work in a stone quarry without the walls; and the most painful sight I saw at Sing Sing were the sentinels placed on prominent points commanding the prison, with loaded muskets and fixed bayonets, who have orders at once to shoot a convict who may attempt to escape, if he does not obey the order to return. I was told, however, an occurrence of the kind had not happened for years.

A number of the female domestics in different families in the village of Sing Sing, have been prisoners, and are now reformed and generally conducting themselves to the entire satisfaction of their employers.

There are few subjects more interesting to a civilized and Christian community, than that of prison discipline. It will scarcely, at the present day, be denied that the only motives on which, in such a government, criminal law can be administered, are the public safety, and the reformation of the criminal himself. Vengeance has not been delegated to man under the Christian dispensation. It is too evident, nevertheless, that the principle of retaliatory punishment, irrespective of any considerations of public safety, or the benefit of the offender, pervades our criminal jurisprudence, both in theory and practice, and just so far as this is the case, is the last great object defeated, for his feelings are deadened, and his heart hardened by it. The most depraved wretch has that within him which testifies that his fellow worm has no right to inflict pain upon him solely as a punishment, and his heart rebels against what he feels to be oppression. On the more enlightened, the effect is equally unfavorable, for he contrasts the practice of his persecutors with their profession, and is perhaps conducted thereby to infidelity and despair. One of the prisoners at Sing Sing, while contrasting the former with the present management, said, "We used to hear the gospel preached to us on the Sabbath, but see its doctrines trampled upon in all the conduct pursued towards us the whole week besides." How different the result where the law of love reigns! At Sing Sing there are numerous recent instances where conviction on the minds of the prisoners that the authorities of the prison have no other object than their temporal and spiritual benefit, has softened their hearts, and thereby disposed them to the reception of that consoling faith in a crucified Saviour, which is the only foundation of true amendment of life. How important is it that all the offices in a prison should be filled by persons of true piety; and where can such be more usefully employed?

In a former part of this work, I have expressed a somewhat unfavorable opinion on "the separate system," adopted in the Philadelphia Penitentiary. One of my objections to this system is this, that to deprive man so entirely of human society, is to do violence to the strongest instinct of his nature, and thereby to inflict suffering far more severe than corporeal pain or privation. If the severity of this system does not obviously tend to carry out the legitimate objects of prison discipline, it cannot be defended. The small number of recommittals is no proof of the efficacy of this system; since, in a country like the United States, a liberated felon may very easily choose another locality for his sphere of action. In favor of the "separate system," it is occasionally pleaded that the prisoner is under a veil of secresy; and that when he goes forth, neither the censorious public, nor his fellow-prisoners, can point him out; and thus, his character being comparatively unblemished, he can, with less difficulty, procure employment. It is obvious that this would induce, in many cases, a degree of dishonest concealment from an employer, and encourage dissimulation. It would be much better that the prisoner should depend for a situation on the good character which the superintendent would give him if reformed; and I was glad to find at Sing Sing guarded situations had been procured, in numerous instances, for the liberated prisoners, and that their employers, with very little exception, represented them to be most valuable servants. I could hear of no case, in either of the prisons I visited, of any permanent injury to the health of a prisoner from the entire disuse of intoxicating drinks, however intemperate their previous habits might have been. The same remark is true with regard to tobacco. I will only add, that it is notorious that the prison discipline of Great Britain, notwithstanding all its recent improvements, is yet lamentably deficient; and that though the United States justly claim precedence of us in this respect, they have, by no means reached perfection. The greatest deficiency of all, however, in each nation, is that of institutions like the Philadelphia Refuge, co-extensive with the wants of the community, for the reformation of juvenile delinquency; thus suppressing crime in its small beginnings. So long as this want is unsupplied, and the juvenile offender is contaminated by contact with the hardened criminal, the statesmen and those who control the legislatures of both countries, dishonor their profession of Christianity.

On the 26th, I accompanied my friends, J. and M. Candler, to the steamer which was to convey them on board the "Roscius" packet, to sail for Liverpool this afternoon. I afterwards called upon Charles Collins, who, for many years past, has dealt exclusively in articles of free labor produce, and for which he said he had found the demand to increase of late. I am more and more convinced that this branch of the abolition question has not received the attention it deserves from the friends of the cause. Before leaving New York, I ought not to omit to record a visit that was on a previous occasion paid us at our hotel, by William Cullen Bryant, whose name on this side of the water is associated with some of the most beautiful productions of American literature. He is the editor of the New York Evening Post, a leading democratic paper, and, to his credit be it said, he has always advocated the rights of the abolitionists. He has a thin, pale, thought-worn countenance, and his manner is quiet and unassuming. I also formed an agreeable acquaintance with Lydia Maria Child, known in both hemispheres as one of the most pleasing of American writers. She is editor of the National Anti-Slavery Standard. Her services in the cause of the slave have been of great value, and have been given at the risk of destroying her interests and popularity as an author.

I finally quitted this city, in the steamer, for Boston, on the 24th, accompanied by John G. Whittier.

I remained in Boston till the first of the Eighth Month, (August) when I embarked on board the "Caledonia" steamer for England.—During the interval, I made a number of calls upon the abolitionists in Boston; and, among others, saw Henry and Maria Chapman and Wendell Phillips; the former of whom had just returned from a visit to Hayti, and the latter from Europe. I had several interviews with Martha V. and Lucy M. Ball, secretaries of the Boston Female Emancipation Society, who have long been faithful and laborious abolitionists. I also met, as at New York, a number of the friends of the cause, again to consider the best time for calling a second general Convention, to whom I read the London minutes on that subject. A resolution was unanimously passed, of the same tenor as those of New York, lately noticed. While in this city, I had not only the pleasure of renewing my intimacy with my friend, Nathaniel Colver, who is known to many of the English abolitionists as their valuable and cordial coadjutor at the great Convention in London, but of becoming acquainted with many zealous and able friends of the slave. One of these was Amos A. Phelps, one of those who signed the original declaration issued by the American Anti-Slavery Society, on its foundation at Philadelphia, in 1833.

We also went to Salem, and met a number of "Friends" who were abolitionists, and who appeared desirous to embrace every suitable opportunity of promoting the cause.

Salem is a city of about fourteen thousand inhabitants, and I was told that the number of its population who went and returned to and from Boston, a distance of fourteen miles, weekly, was about five hundred—a striking proof of the locomotive energy of the Americans. Their gratification, in this respect, has been much facilitated of late by the rapid extension of railways. These, with few exceptions, are by no means so completely constructed as in England; but, owing to the cheapness of land, timber, et cet., and by making the lines generally single, and, on the average, the speed of travelling being about one-fourth less than is common in England, they answer the purpose of rapid transit, while the outlay is about as many dollars per mile as it is sovereigns with us. On this railway, and some others in New England, the lines are double, and the construction and speed are nearly equal to ours.

I was informed, the proportion of severe accidents is not larger than in Great Britain. The carriages are generally built to hold sixty or seventy persons, who are seated two by two, one behind another, on double rows of seats, ranged across the carriage, with room to walk between, along the centre. The carriage in which we returned from Salem had twenty-two seats on each side, to contain two each, or, in the whole, eighty-eight passengers. Yet the weight of this machine would be little more than that of an English first-class carriage, to hold eighteen persons, and it cost probably less. Their carriages are well ventilated in summer, and warmed by a stove in winter. Locomotive engines approach Boston near enough to prevent the use of horses; but, on arriving at the distance of a mile or two from New York, Philadelphia, and Baltimore, the carriages and passengers are drawn in by horses. One carriage is often specially reserved for the ladies on the principal lines, into which gentlemen do not usually intrude, unless they have ladies under their care. It is common, however, for the latter to take their seats in any of the carriages. There is no distinction of price, and none of accommodation, except that an inferior and more exposed carriage, at the same fare, is purposely provided for persons of color; but this disgraceful relic of past times cannot survive long. The principal disadvantage that I observed on the American, as compared with the English railways, was the delay on meeting other trains, and on stopping for them at places where they could pass, and also the sparks from the wood, used for fuel instead of coke. On one occasion, my coat was set on fire in this way, though I was seated in a covered carriage. Very efficient locomotive engines are made in the United States. I visited a celebrated manufactory at Philadelphia, which has sent ten to England, for the use of the Birmingham and Gloucester Railway. At the time of my visit, they had many orders unexecuted from several European governments. As far as my inquiries went, the cost of making them is, upon the whole, about the same as in England.

Having been, for several years, a director on the Birmingham and London Railway, I felt some interest in these inquiries, and came to the conclusion, that there are several arrangements of economy, and some of convenience, in the construction and working of railways, which the English might borrow with advantage from the United States.

On the 29th instant, the secretary of the Peace Society convened a meeting of the members of that society, and of other influential gentlemen, including Alden Bradford, late secretary of the State of Massachusetts; Robert Rantoul, an eloquent and prominent member of the legislature, and S.E. Coues, of New Hampshire,[A] to take into consideration the best means of securing permanent international peace. A very harmonious and satisfactory discussion took place, and the following statement of the proceedings was subsequently handed to me by the gentleman who officiated as secretary to the meeting:

A: Since elected President of the American Peace Society.

"A meeting of the friends of peace was held in the city of Boston, on the evening of the 29th day of July, 1841.

"The meeting was called for the purpose of meeting Mr. Joseph Sturge, from England, and there were present most of the active members of the American Peace Society.

"Amasa Walker, Esq., was chosen chairman; and J.P. Blanchard, secretary.

"Mr. Sturge addressed the meeting, and suggested the expediency of calling, at some future time, a Convention of the friends of peace, of different nations, to deliberate upon the best method of adjusting international disputes; and, offered, for the consideration of the meeting, a plan proposed by Judge Jay, in which all the friends of peace could unite.

"The meeting was then addressed by several gentlemen, who cordially approved the plan proposed, and, subsequently, the following resolutions were unanimously adopted.

"Resolved,—That this meeting receives with great pleasure the suggestion of our friend Joseph Sturge, of England, of a general conference of the friends of peace, at the earliest practical opportunity, at London, to consult on the measures which are best adapted to promote universal peace among the nations of the earth; and they respectfully refer the subject to the executive committee of the American Peace Society, for their decision, on correspondence and consultation with the friends of the cause in this and other countries.

"Resolved,—That the suggestion by Judge Jay, of the insertion of a clause in all conventional treaties between nations, mutually binding the parties to submit all international disputes, during the continuance of such treaties, to the arbitration of some one or more friendly powers, presents a definite and practicable object of effort, worthy of the serious attention of the friends of peace. And this meeting recommends to the friends of the cause, in different countries, to petition their respective Governments in favor of the measure."

On the 30th, in company with John G. Whittier and C. Stewart Renshaw, I went over to Lowell, the chief seat of the woollen and cotton manufacture in America. Less than twenty years ago, there were not more than forty or fifty houses on the site of this flourishing city, which now contains upwards of twenty thousand inhabitants. Its numerous mills are all worked by water power, and belong to incorporated joint-stock companies. We were obligingly shown over two of the largest woollen and cotton factories, where every stage of the manufacture was in process, from the cotton, or sheep's wool, to the finished fabric. We also visited works, where the printing of cottons is executed in a superior style, besides a new process for dyeing cotton in the thread, invented by an Englishman, now in the establishment. The following abstract of the manufacturing statistics of Lowell, on the first of January, 1841, will show the great importance to which this new branch of industry has attained with such unprecedented rapidity.

Ten joint-stock companies, with a capital of ten millions of dollars, having thirty-two woollen and cotton factories, besides print works, et cet., with one hundred and seventy-eight thousand eight hundred and sixty-eight spindles, and five thousand five hundred and eighty-eight looms, employing two thousand one hundred and seventy-two males, and six thousand nine hundred and twenty females, who made, in 1840, sixty-five millions eight hundred and two thousand four hundred yards of cotton and woollen cloths, in which were consumed twenty-one millions four hundred and twenty-four thousand pounds of cotton alone.

The average amount earned by the male hands employed, exclusive of their board, is four dollars and eighty cents, or about twenty shillings sterling per week, and of the females two dollars, or about eight shillings and sixpence per week.

But the most striking and gratifying feature of Lowell, is the high moral and intellectual condition of its working population. In looking over the books of the mills we visited, where the operatives entered their names, I observed very few that were not written by themselves; certainly not five per cent. of the whole number were signed with a mark, and many of these were evidently Irish. It was impossible to go through the mills, and notice the respectable appearance and becoming and modest deportment of the "factory girls," without forming a very favorable estimate of their character and position in society. But it would be difficult indeed for a passing observer to rate them so high as they are proved to be by the statistics of the place. The female operatives are generally boarded in houses built and owned by the "corporation" for whom they work, and which are placed under the superintendence of matrons of exemplary character, and skilled in housewifery, who pay a low rent for the houses, and provide all necessaries for their inmates, over whom they exercise a general oversight, receiving about one dollar and one-third from each per week. Each of these houses accommodates from thirty to fifty young women, and there is a wholesome rivalry among the mistresses which shall make their inmates most comfortable. We visited one of the hoarding houses, and were highly pleased with its arrangement. A considerable number of the factory girls are farmers' daughters, and come hither from Vermont, New Hampshire, and other distant States, to work for two, three, or four years, when they return to their native hills, dowered with a little capital of their own earnings. The factory operatives at Lowell form a community that commands the respect of the neighborhood, and of all under whose observation they come. No female of an immoral character could remain a week in any of the mills. The superintendent of the Boott Corporation informed me, that, during the five and a half years of his superintendence of that factory, employing about nine hundred and fifty young women, he had known of but one case of an illegitimate birth—and the mother was an Irish "immigrant." Any male or female employed, who was known to be in a state of inebriety, would be at once dismissed.

At the suggestion of the benevolent and intelligent superintendent of the Boott Company, we waited to see the people turn out to dinner, at half-past twelve o'clock. We stood in a position where many hundreds passed under our review, whose dress, and quiet and orderly demeanor would have done credit to any congregation breaking up from their place of worship. One of the gentlemen with me, who is from a slave State, where all labor is considered degrading, remarked, with emotion, "What would I give if, (naming a near relative in the slave States,) could witness this only for a quarter of an hour!" We dined with one of our abolition friends at Lowell, who informed us that many hundreds of the factory girls were members of the Anti-Slavery Society; and that, although activity in this cause has been pretty much suspended by the division in the ranks of its friends, yet there is no diminution of good feeling on the subject. The following extracts, from a pamphlet published by a respectable citizen of Lowell, will further illustrate the moral statistics of the place, which, I believe, can be paralleled by no other manufacturing town in the world. The work is dated July, 1839:—

"There are now in the city fourteen regularly organized religious societies, besides one or two others quite recently established. Ten of these societies constitute a Sabbath School Union. Their third annual report was made on the fourth of the present month, and it has been published within a few days. I derive from it the following facts. The number of scholars connected with the ten schools at the time of making the report, was four thousand nine hundred and thirty-six, and the number of teachers was four hundred and thirty-three, making an aggregate of five thousand three hundred and sixty-nine. The number who joined the schools during the year, was three thousand seven hundred and seventy, the number who left was three thousand one hundred and twenty-nine. About three-fourths of the scholars are females. A large proportion of the latter are over fifteen years of age, and consist of girls employed in the mills. More than five hundred of these scholars have, during the last year, become personally interested in practical piety, and more than six hundred have joined themselves to the several churches. Now let it be borne in mind, that there are four or five Sunday Schools in the city, some of which are large and flourishing, not included in this statement. Let it be borne in mind, too, that a great proportion of these scholars are the factory girls, and furthermore, that these most gratifying results just given, have nothing in them extraordinary—they are only the common, ordinary results of several of the past years. There has been no unusual excitement; no noise, no commotion. Silently, quietly, unobtrusively, from Sabbath to Sabbath, in these little nurseries of truth, duty and religion, has the good seed been sowing and springing up—watered by the dews, and warmed by the smiles of heaven—to everlasting life....

"I shall now proceed to enumerate some of the influences which have been most powerful in bringing about these results. Among these are the example and watchful care and oversight of the boarding house keepers, the superintendents, and the overseers.... But a power vastly more active, all pervading and efficient, than any and all of these, is to be found in the jealous and sleepless watchfulness, over each other, of the girls themselves.... The strongest guardianship of their own character, as a class, is in their own hands, and they will not suffer either overseer or superintendent to be indifferent to this character with impunity.

"The relationship which is here established between the Sunday school scholar and her teacher—between the member of the church and her pastor—the attachments which spring up between them, are rendered close and strong by the very circumstances in which these girls are placed. These relationships and these attachments take the place of the domestic ties and the home affections, and they have something of the strength and fervency of these."

The next extract shows their prosperity in a pecuniary point.

"The average wages, clear of board, amount to about two dollars a week. Many an aged father or mother, in the country, is made happy and comfortable, by the self-sacrificing contributions from the affectionate and dutiful daughter here. Many an old homestead has been cleared of its incumbrances, and thus saved to the family by these liberal and honest earnings. To the many and most gratifying and cheering facts, which, in the course of this examination I have had occasion to state, I here add a few others relating to the matter now under discussion, furnished me by Mr. Carney, the treasurer of the Lowell Institution for Savings. The whole number of depositors in this institution, on the 23d July, was nineteen hundred and seventy-six; the whole number of deposits was three hundred and five thousand seven hundred and ninety-six dollars and seventy cents, (about £60,000.) Of these depositors, nine hundred and seventy-eight are factory girls, and the amount of their funds now in the bank, is estimated by Mr. Carney, in round numbers, at one hundred thousand dollars, (about £20,000.) It is a common thing for one of these girls to have five hundred dollars (about £100 sterling) in deposit, and the only reason why she does not exceed this sum is the fact, that the institution pays no interest on any larger sum than this. After reaching this amount, she invests her remaining funds elsewhere."

In confirmation of this description of the state of the Lowell population, I have obtained, through the kindness of a friend in Massachusetts, the following parallel statistics to a recent date:—

"PUBLIC SCHOOLS.—By the report of the school committee for the year ending on the 5th of Fourth Month (April) 1841, it appears that the whole number of pupils in the schools, who attended during the whole or part of the year, was 5,830. The whole amount expended by the city for these schools, during the year, was 18,106 dollars, 51 cents.

"SABBATH SCHOOLS.—The number of scholars and teachers in the Sabbath Schools, connected with the various religious societies in Lowell, during the year ending on the 5th of Seventh Month (July) 1841, was 5,493.

"SAVINGS BANK.—The Lowell Institution for Savings, in its report of Fifth Month (May), 1840, acknowledges 328,395 dollars, 55 cents, deposits, from 2,137 persons; together with 16,093 dollars, 29 cents, nett amount received for interest on loans and dividends in stocks, less expense and dividends paid—making in all, 344,488 dollars, 84 cents; nett amount of interest, 24,714 dollars, 61 cents. Within the year, 120,175 dollars, 69 cents, had been deposited, and 70,384 dollars, 24 cents, drawn out.

"PAUPERS.—The whole expense of the city for the support of the poor, during the year ending on the 31st of Twelfth Month (December) 1840, was 2,698 dollars, 61 cents."

As a proof, slight yet significant, of the spread of intellectual cultivation, I ought not to omit a notice of the "Lowell Offering," a little monthly magazine, of original articles, written exclusively by the factory girls. The editor of the Boston Christian Examiner commends this little periodical to those who consider the factory system to be degrading and demoralizing; and expresses a doubt "whether a committee of young ladies, selected from the most refined and best educated families in any of our towns and cities, could make a fairer appearance in type than these hard-working factory girls."

The city of Lowell has been distinguished by British tourists as the Manchester of the United States; but, in view of the facts above related, an American has declared it to be "not the Manchester of the United States."

Besides the general prosperity of the operatives, the shareholders in the different corporations divide from eight to fifteen per cent, per annum on their capital.

The inquiry naturally suggests itself, why the state of things in the manufacturing districts of Great Britain should be so widely different from this? Some may satisfy themselves by recollecting that England is an old and America a young country; though, to my mind, this affords no reasonable explanation of the contrast—since, from the possession of surplus capital, complete machinery, and facility of communication, et cet., the advantages for commerce and manufactures, under a system of perfectly unrestricted exchange, must preponderate greatly in favor of the former. But whatever the solution of the difficulty, it is quite evident that the statesman who would elevate the moral standard of our working population, must begin by removing the physical depression and destitution in which a large proportion of them, without any fault of their own, are compelled to drag out a weary and almost hopeless existence. To some peculiarly constituted minds, "over-production" is the explanation of the present appalling distresses of this country; and what they are pleased to consider a healthy state of things, is to be restored by a diminution of production;—yet nothing is more certain, than that the largest amount of production which has ever been reached, is not more than adequate to supply our increasing population with the necessaries of life, on even a very limited scale of comfort. A diminished production implies the starving down of the population to such a diminished number as may obtain leave to toil, and leave to subsist, from legislators, who, either in ignorance or selfishness, set aside nature's laws, and disregard the plainly legible ordinances of Divine Providence. If we reflect on the part which commerce is made to perform in the moral government of the world, on the one hand as the bond of peace between powerful nations, by creating a perpetual interchange of temporal benefits; and, on the other, as the channel for the diffusion of blessings of an intellectual and spiritual kind; we are conducted irresistibly to the conclusion, that any arbitrary interruption of its free course must draw down its own punishment.

Though the laws of nature may not permit the limited soil of this country to grow food enough for its teeming population, yet while Great Britain possesses mineral wealth, abundant capital, and the largest amount of skilled industry of any nation in the world, the tributary supplies of other countries would not only satisfy our present wants, but would, I firmly believe, with an unfettered commerce, raise our working population, the most numerous, and by far the most important part of the community, to the same level of prosperity as the same class in the United States. Then would there be more hope for the success of efforts to elevate the standard of moral and intellectual cultivation among them, for as an improvable material they are no way inferior to any population upon earth. John Curtis of Ohio, a free trade missionary to this country, has published a pamphlet full of important statistical facts, illustrating the suicidal policy of Great Britain, from which I venture to take the following extracts:

"England already obtains luxuries in superabundance; but these can never supply the wants of her artizans—they demand substantial bread and meat, and a market where their labor can procure these necessaries. Tropical climates are not adapted to supply their wants. For this reason trade either with the East or West Indies cannot give effectual relief: it may furnish luxuries, but England is overstocked with them already. The food of tropical climates, with the exception of rice, is not calculated for export. The people of England, if they are to import food, need the production of a climate similar to their own. In this respect America is well adapted to supply them.

"All parts of the United States between thirty-seven and forty-four degrees of north latitude will produce wheat. But that part of the country best adapted to furnish an abundant supply is, beyond all question, the northern part of the Mississippi valley, and the contiguous country south of the great lakes. It has been styled par excellence the wheat-growing region of America. Within its limits lie the six north-western States of the American Union, Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Michigan, Iowa, and Wiskonsan (including as States the two territories of Iowa and Wiskonsan, about to be admitted into the Union.) These States, exclusive of two hundred thousand square miles, the title to which is yet mostly in the Indian tribes, cover an area of two hundred and thirty-six thousand and eleven square miles. The country is, generally, an undulating prairie, interspersed with groves of trees, and unbroken by hill or mountain. The soil commonly rests upon a strata of limestone, is fertile beyond description, and abundantly watered by the finest springs and streams. Its climate is clear and salubrious, and the country as well calculated as any other on the globe to minister to the support and happiness of civilized man. As already explained, for an inland country, it possesses unequalled facilities for foreign intercourse and commerce, by means of its great lakes and rivers. The most distant parts of it are now reached in twenty days from Liverpool. The energies of the American people have been chiefly expended, during the last few years, in opening and taking possession of this region, which they consider destined to become the future seat of American wealth and greatness.

"Wheat once formed a leading article in the exports of the United States. The trade of that country with Great Britain was then double the present amount in proportion to the number of the population. Had the trade of the two countries continued free, it would have increased with the increase of population and capital. The legitimate exchange trade has decreased between England and America for thirty years. What part has the restrictive system had in producing this result? A few facts may enable us not only to answer this question, but to anticipate the consequences of a continuance of the same policy. From the time of the revolutionary war in America until 1812, the trade between the two countries regularly increased with the increase of the population. The average annual consumption of foreign merchandise in the United States for each inhabitant was,

From 1790 to 1800, | 39s. 4d.
"  1800 to 1810, | 41s. 8d.

"In 1812 came the second American war, and in 1815 the British corn law, which was promptly followed by the high American tariff of 1816. For ten years prior to 1830, the annual average consumption of merchandize had fallen to 22s. 6d., while the population of the States was nearly double, and their capital treble that of the ten years preceding 1810. Soon after 1830 followed the modification of the American tariff, and the importations based on the great transatlantic loans of that period. But, notwithstanding the stimulation and extravagance of the time, the average annual consumption amounted to only 31s. per head of foreign produce during the ten years prior to 1840. Abating the importation based on the loans of the last few years, and the trade of England with the United States has not increased in amount for the last thirty years, while the population of England has increased from eighteen to twenty-seven millions, and that of the States from seven to seventeen millions.

"Let the reader observe this, that in the Eastern States, in that of Massachusetts, for instance, in which State Boston is situated, the people bring a large part of their food from the Western States, where they obtain it in exchange for their manufactures. If free trade were allowed, is it possible for any man to give a reason why the manufacturer and laborer of Manchester would not be able to do as well as the manufacturer and laborer of Boston now does, abating the difference of transporting goods and grain across the Atlantic? At least, the consequence would be an extension of trade, and employment equal to the amount of food which would, in such case, be brought from America; and the limit to this quantity will be found only when the wants of Englishmen are supplied, and their ability to pay exhausted. The ability of America to supply any required quantity of food has already been shown. There lie the broad lands, ready for cultivation as soon as there shall be a demand for the produce. And if seventeen millions of people, sent chiefly from England, or descended from those who have been sent, are not sufficient to raise the requisite quantity of provisions demanded of them by those who remain in the parent country, then let more be sent, for the land lies equally open to the people of all nations.

"Then, as to the ability of Englishmen to pay for all they want, let us ask, what those who produce the food, or those who bring it, can want in exchange that England cannot furnish? Gold, it is said.[A] But for what do they want gold but to purchase other supplies than food? and as they would then have the means to pay, England would be the very country which, of all others, could supply them to advantage. Whatever was wanted which her own artizans do not produce themselves, they could still supply. Englishmen would not at all be confined to a direct sale or exchange of their goods with the wheat grower, but can give him the merchandize of India and China, and the fruits of the tropics, for which English manufactures would pay. If the idle mills and idle laborers of England could at once be set at work to produce food for the people, new activity would be imparted to trade in every part of the world—from India to the frozen regions of Greenland and Labrador. But, on the other hand, how is it possible for England to extend her foreign trade while the present restrictions continue? Even with such a country as India, reduced under British sway, it cannot be done except by diminishing the commerce with other countries to the same extent. England cannot, in her present condition, greatly increase her consumption of such merchandize as India can furnish, or dispose of such merchandize abroad, to any great extent, for the reasons already given.

A: "Englishmen, reasoning from a restricted course of trade, are constantly prone to the belief that the purchase of foreign corn, from some unexplained necessity, must take away their gold. Americans, from the same cause, reason in the same manner respecting the purchase of foreign goods. Under the action of the restrictive system, there may be some truth in the reasonings of each party, but they certainly form a beautiful running commentary upon each other."

"As to any proposed gain by the Colonial trade, it is the very thing rejected by the restrictions on the trade with the United States. What are these States but the greatest colonies ever planted by Great Britain? and their independence does not at all prevent England from deriving all the advantage from them ever to be derived from colonies. The only good which England can derive from her extensive colonization is not to be gained by swaying a barren sceptre over distant colonies, but by spreading abroad her race, her language, her civilization, and thus enlarging the sphere of her commerce. Under a free system of intercourse England would not derive less benefit, at present, from the United States than if they had remained a part of the British dominions, for if trade were free, they would not trade the less because of their independence, or furnish less food, or at higher prices. England, however, seems determined to sacrifice all the advantages which naturally accrue to her from having colonized the finest part of the New World, and to refuse the abundance and relief thus providentially prepared by her own offspring."

The great importance of these extracts is the best apology for their length—but there is yet another branch of the subject. A country whose population is beyond its means of supply from its own soil, has no resources but that of her manufactures and foreign trade; if these be dried up, her people must emigrate or starve. But the United States has an alternative;—her first and best resource,—and the most profitable application of her industry is in her broad and fertile lands, the superabundant produce of which would not only feed, but, by exchange, clothe her population, and supply them with all the comforts of civilized life. She cannot avail herself of this to its full extent without our aid. But, if we refuse to trade on equal terms, her wants will not, therefore, go unsupplied. She can manufacture for herself—her resources for manufactures and commerce are, at least, equal to our own, with the exception of capital and population, which the lapse of a few more years will supply.

"The present may justly be considered a crisis in the commercial policy of America. If it be decided that foreign markets are to continue closed against American corn—if England, which is the principal corn market of the world, refuse to exchange the produce of her mills and workshops for that of the fields of the Americans, they have no other alternative than to erect mills and workshops from which to supply themselves. The effect of such a course would prove decisive on the trade with England, and go far to complete the ruin so effectually begun by the British corn law and corresponding restrictions. If forced from employment on the land, which an abundant and fertile soil has naturally made their most profitable one, it will be found that the Americans lack neither the talent, the energy, nor the means, at once to extend their present manufactures to the full supply of their own wants. They have water-power, coal, and iron, in greater natural abundance and perfection than any other part of the world."[A]

A: "The United States are computed to contain not less than eighty thousand square miles of coal, or sixteen times as much as Europe. One of these coal fields extends nine hundred miles in length. The State of Pennsylvania has ten thousand square miles of coal and iron. Great Britain and Ireland have two thousand. All the north-western States of America contain large quantities of coal. The coal strata of the States generally lie above the level of the streams, and the coal is taken from the hill sides. The beds of coal and iron are to a great extent contiguous."

This is not mere theory. The developement is actually begun:

"A few years since, the country smiths, and the matrons with their daughters at the household wheel and loom, were the principal manufacturers of America. Now the cotton mills alone are computed at one thousand, and the capital invested in manufacturing machinery at £23,500,000. The estimated value of some of the principal articles of manufacture is as follows:

Woollens, | £15,750,000
Cotton, | 11,250,000
Leather, | 9,000,000
Hats and Caps, | 3,575,000
Linen, | 1,350,000
Paper, | 1,350,000
Glass, | 1,125,000
Iron and Steel, | 11,250,000

"Some idea of the rapidity with which the American manufactures are now capable of being extended, may be formed from the past progress of the cotton manufacture. The consumption of raw cotton was,

In 1833, | 196,000 bales.
1835, | 236,700   "
1837, | 246,000   "
1839, | 276,000   "

"The United States already supply two-thirds of their own consumption of cottons. At the above rate of increase—of nearly fifty per cent, in five years—America will much more than supply its own market in five years to come. Never has the manufacturing interest of the United States been in as prosperous and sound a condition as at present. They need no high tariff to protect them against British competition. The English corn law is their best protection."

It is the restrictive policy of Great Britain that has called into existence Lowell and the manufacturing cities of the United States, producing an immense amount of articles which were once the sole products of British industry and skill. If the same policy is continued, the prosperity of the United States will be impeded, but that of England will be destroyed.

The following is an extract from the memorial of Joshua Leavitt to Congress, on the wheat interests of the North Western States:

"Should it, indeed, come to be settled that there is to be no foreign market for these products, the fine country under contemplation is not, therefore, to be despaired of. Let the necessity once become apparent, and there will be but one mind among the people of the North-west. The same patriotism which carried our fathers through the self-denying non-importation agreements of the revolution, will produce a fixed determination to build up a home market, at every sacrifice. And it can be done. What has been done already in the way of manufactures, shows that it can be done. The recent application of the hot-blast with anthracite coal to the making of iron, and the discovery of a mine of natural steel, would be auxiliaries of immense value. We could draw to our factories the best workmen of Europe, attracted less by the temptation of wages, than by the desire to leave liberty and land as the inheritance of their children. But it would take a long time to build up a manufacturing interest adequate to supply the wants of the Northwest, or to consume the produce of these wide fields; and the burden of taxation for internal improvements, uncompleted and unproductive, would be very heavy and hard to bear: and all the population that is concentrated upon manufactures, is so much kept back from the occupation of that noble domain; and the national treasury would feel the effects of the curtailment of imports and the cessation of land sales; and the amount of misery which the loss of the American market would occasion to the starving operatives and factory children on the other side of the Atlantic, is worthy to be taken into the account, by every statesman who has not forgotten that he is a man."

If we refuse the Americans as customers, we compel them to become our rivals; and, after supplying their own wants, they will compete with us for the trade of the world, on more than equal terms. Our statesmen may yet employ America to build up the prosperity of our country whilst increasing her own, or they may suffer its rapidly developing and gigantic resources to work out our ruin: the alternative is before them and before the country—but decision must be prompt, for there is no pause in the march of events. However unwise the policy, we cannot be surprised that the American and Continental manufacturer are each applying to his government to follow our example, and protect home trade by fiscal regulations.

This question of trade with America has also most important anti-slavery bearings—and here, again, I find my own views anticipated by the able writer already quoted:

"The present policy of restricting the traffic with America so closely to cotton, gives a deceitful appearance to the stated imports and exports. From these statements there should, in fairness, be deducted the value of all the raw cotton which is returned to America; and, in fact, if the true exchange trade would be seen, all should be deducted that is exported from England. That portion of cotton goods which is of English origin, that is, their value above the raw material out of which they were made, is, in fact, the only real part of English export. Before exclusive importance was bestowed on cotton, the exchange with America was in a large proportion of articles not to be returned. It would be so again if trade were free."

Again:

"To one effect which would be produced in America by the repeal of the corn and provision laws, no party or class in England can profess indifference, and that is, its effect on slavery in the United States. At the present time, England gives a premium to American slavery by admitting, at low duties, the cotton of the slave-holder, which is his staple production, and refusing corn, which is mostly the produce of free labor. The slave-holding States, to the productions of which Great Britain confines her American trade, are less populous and less wealthy than the free; yet of their produce England received in 1839, according to the American estimates, £11,600,000, while of that of the free States she received less than £500,000."

"It should be remembered that the labor of the slave States, is almost wholly expended in agriculture, under the stimulus of a good market, while a large part of that of the free States is otherwise employed, for the want of such market. The effective laborers of the free States are double the number of those in the slave States; and were an opportunity given them, they would export in as great a proportion. Thus England, by her laws, fosters an odious institution abroad, which, in words, she loudly condemns, and spends millions to rid the world of; whilst she rejects more honorable, profitable, and wealthy customers, the fruits of whose free and active industry are in effect made contraband in England by law.

"Not only would England escape this inconsistency and reproach, by repealing the corn law, but she would strike a most effectual blow at the existence of slavery in the United States. Cotton, at present, from being made by the corn law the principal exchangeable article in the American trade, assumes an undue and unnatural importance in American commerce, legislation, and home industry. The slave-owner drives his slaves in its production, and purchases supplies of the northern freeman, whose interests are thus identified with those of the cotton grower, and the slave-holding interest becomes predominant in the country. From their habits, the people of the slave-holding States are constantly contracting more debts in the free States than they have the means of paying; so that, under the present system of intercourse, the slaveholders exercise over the free population of the north, the same control which an insolvent debtor frequently has over his creditor, by threatening to break and ruin him, if not allowed his own way. A repeal of the corn laws would release the free States from their present commercial and consequent political vassalage to the southern slave-holders, and thereby take from American slavery, the great citadel of its strength, and insure its overthrow by the influences which would arise to assail it from all quarters.

"But as free trade, in destroying the odious monopoly of the haughty slave-holder, would benefit and not injure him, so would its effects be found universally. It would give peace and plenty to England and the world,—it would enlarge and secure trade, bind the spreading branches of the Anglo-saxon race by natural affinity to England as their acknowledged head, and promote the liberty and civilization of the human family at large."

In view of the whole spirit of this discussion of one of the most important questions bearing upon human interests, I would simply add, that a wise Providence has bound the duty and the interest, both of individual and social man, firmly together, but for the trial of his virtue the bands are concealed.

On the 31st, I took my luggage on board the steam packet "Caledonia," for Liverpool, via Halifax, which was to sail the day following, although it was the first day of the week. The proprietors of the packets are bound in a heavy fine to sail on the appointed days, whether those fall on the first day of the week or not. By this arrangement the religious feelings of the people of Boston are offended, which is the more inexcusable, on the part of the British Government, as it does not suffer its own mails to depart, either from London or Halifax, on that day. Some gentlemen, who were interested in the subject, placed in my hands a memorial addressed to the Lords of the Admiralty in Great Britain, praying for such an alteration of the arrangements as would prevent this periodical violation of the first day of the week. A gentleman, who was active in getting it signed, assured me it was received with universal favor. The signatures, obtained on very short notice, are those of the most influential men in their respective stations in the city of Boston, and include the names of the mayor of the city, an ex-lieutenant governor of the State of Massachusetts, one bishop, upwards of forty ministers of religion, of different denominations, nine gentleman, upwards of one hundred and twenty merchants, seventeen presidents of insurance companies, the post-master of Boston, five physicians, seven members of the legal profession, and two editors of newspapers. After my arrival in this country, I presented this document, through the Secretary of the Admiralty, to the authorities to whom it is addressed, but regret to state that the request was not complied with. The memorial, and the reply of the Lords of the Admiralty are given in the Appendix[A]

A: .See Appendix L.

On leaving the shores of the United States, I left the following letter for publication:—

"To the Friends of Immediate Emancipation in the United States.

"Having visited your country as an humble fellow-laborer in the great cause in which you are engaged, and which, through trials and difficulties a stranger can scarcely appreciate, you have so zealously maintained, I have had a pleasing and satisfactory interview with many of you, with reference to future exertions, in cooperation with those of other lands, who unite with you in regarding slave-holding and slave-trading as a heinous sin in the sight of God, which should be immediately abolished. It is the especial privilege of those who are laboring in such a cause, to feel that 'every country is their country, and every man their brother,' and to live above the atmosphere of sectional jealousy and national hostility; and hence I feel an assurance, that you will receive with kindness a few lines from me on the eve of my departure to my native land.

"You concur generally in opinion, that in endeavoring to obtain the great object we have in view, it is very important that the friends of the cause should be united, not only in principle, but, as far as may be, in the character of the measures which they pursue; and I have been much encouraged in finding that you have generally adopted the sentiment so rapidly spreading on the other side of the Atlantic,—'That there is no reasonable hope of abolishing the slave-trade, but, by the abolition of slavery, and that no measures should be pursued for its attainment, but those which are of a moral, religious, and pacific character.' The progress of emancipation in Europe has been, beyond a doubt, greatly retarded by leaving slavery and the slave-holder unmarked by public reprobation, and concentrating all the energies of philanthropy upon a fruitless effort to abolish the slave-trade. And in this country the Colonization scheme, with its delusive promise of good to Africa, and its vague anticipations of putting an end to the slave-trade by armed colonies on the coast of that ill-fated continent, has been the means of obstructing emancipation at home, of unprofitably absorbing the energies and blinding the judgment of many sincere friends of the slave, and of strengthening the unchristian prejudice against color. The abolitionists of Europe, with few exceptions, have seen the error of their former course of action, and are now striking directly at the root, instead of lopping the branches of slavery; and if further evidence of the evil tendency and character of colonization is needed in the United States, the recent proceeding of a meeting of the Maryland Society at Baltimore, must convince all who are friendly to the true interests of the people of color, that it is a scheme deserving only the support of the enemies of freedom.[A]

A: "The following resolution was passed at the meeting of the Maryland Society above alluded to:—'That while it is most earnestly hoped that the free colored people of Maryland may see that their best and most permanent interests will be consulted by their emigration from this State; and while this Convention would deprecate any departure from the principle which makes colonization dependent upon the voluntary action of the free colored people themselves—yet, if, regardless of what has been done to provide them with an asylum, they continue to persist in remaining in Maryland, in the hope of enjoying here an equality of social and political rights, they ought to be solemnly warned, that, in the opinion of this Convention, a day must arrive when circumstances that cannot be controlled, and which are now maturing, will deprive them of choice, and leave them no alternative but removal,'"

"The rapid progress of public opinion, as to the iniquity of slavery, and the entire safety, as well as advantage, of its immediate abolition—the attention which has been awakened to it in all parts of the civilized world—the movements in France, Spain, Brazil, and Denmark, and other countries with slave-holding dependencies, all indicating that the days of slavery are numbered, should serve to encourage and stimulate us to increased exertions; and while it is a cause of profound regret, that any thing should have disturbed the harmony and unity of the real friends of emancipation in this country—the hardest battle field of our moral warfare—I am not without hope, that, in future, those who,—from a conscientious difference of opinion, not as to the object, but the precise mode of obtaining it,—cannot act in one united band, will laudably emulate each other in the promotion of our common cause, and in Christian forbearance upon points of disagreement; and that, where they cannot praise, they will be careful not to censure those, who, by a different road, are earnestly pursuing the same end. Without entering into the controversies which have divided our friends on this side the water, I believe it would be nothing more than a simple act of justice for me to state, on my return to Europe, my conviction that a large portion of the abolitionists of the United States, who approve of the proceedings of the late General Anti-Slavery Convention, and are desirous of acting in unity with the British and Foreign Anti-Slavery Society, from the general identity of their practice, as well as principles, with those of the British and Foreign Society, are entitled to the sympathies, and deserving of the confidence and co-operation of the abolitionists of Great Britain. It has been my pleasure to meet, in a kindly interchange of opinion, many valuable and devoted friends of emancipation; who, while dissenting from the class above-mentioned in some respects, are nevertheless disposed to cultivate feelings of charity and good will towards all who are sincerely laboring for the slaves. And in this connection I may state, that neither on behalf of myself, or of my esteemed coadjutors in Great Britain, am I disposed to recriminate upon another class of abolitionists, who, on some points, have so far differed from the British and Foreign Anti-Slavery Committee, and the great majority of the Convention above mentioned, as to sustain their representatives in refusing to act with that Convention, and in protesting against its proceedings; and who have seen fit to censure the committee in their public meetings and newspapers in this country, as 'arbitrary and despotic,' and their conduct as 'unworthy of men claiming the character of abolitionists.'

"As a corresponding member of the British and Foreign Anti-Slavery Committee, and intimately acquainted with its proceedings, I am persuaded that its members have acted wisely, and consulted the best interest of the cause in which they were engaged, in generally leaving unnoticed any censures that have been cast upon them while in the prosecution of their labors. Yet, before leaving this country, I deem it right to bear my testimony to the great anxiety of that committee faithfully to discharge the duties committed to their trust; and to state that it has never been my privilege to be united to any body more desirous of keeping simply to the one great object of their association—the total and immediate abolition of slavery and the slave-trade. I am persuaded that all candid minds, making due allowance for the imperfection pertaining to human associations, will feel their confidence in the future integrity of that committee increased in proportion as they closely investigate their past acts; and that, even when the wisdom of their course may have been questioned, they will accord to them a scrupulous honesty of purpose.

"The first public suggestion of a General Anti-Slavery Convention, like the one held last year in London, originated, I believe, on this side of the Atlantic, although the Committee of the British and Foreign Anti-Slavery Society took upon themselves the heavy responsibility of convening it. At its close, they invited an expression of the opinion of the delegates, as to the desirableness of again summoning such an assembly. The expression was generally in the affirmative; and, after discussion, a resolution was passed, leaving it to the Committee of the British and Foreign Anti-Slavery Society, after consulting with the friends of the cause in other parts of the world, to decide this important question, as well as the time and place of its meeting, should another Convention be resolved upon.

"Since I have been in the United States, I have found those abolitionists who approved the principles and proceedings of the late Convention so generally in favor of another, and of London as its place of meeting, that the only question seemed to be whether it should be held in 1842 or 1843. This expression of opinion is, I know, so generally in accordance with the views of the British and Foreign Anti-Slavery Committee, and of many other prominent abolitionists in Europe, that I have little doubt they will feel encouraged to act upon it, probably at the latter period. There is abundant and increasing evidence of the powerfully beneficial influence of the late Convention upon almost every part of the world where slavery is still tolerated; and we are encouraged to hope that the one in anticipation will be still more efficient for the promotion of universal liberty.

"Painful as has been to me the spectacle of many of the leading influences of the ecclesiastical bodies in this country, either placed in direct hostility to, or acting as a drag upon, the wheel of the anti-slavery enterprise—and of the manifest preponderance of a slave-holding influence in the councils of the State—I am not one of those who despair of a healthful renovation of public sentiment which shall purify Church as well as State from this abomination. There are decided indications that all efforts of councils and synods to unite 'pure religion and undefiled,' with a slave-trading and slave-holding counterfeit of Christianity, must ere long utterly fail. And it is to me a matter of joy, as it must be to every friend of impartial liberty and free institutions, that the citizens of this republic are more and more feeling that the plague-spot of slavery, as with the increased facilities of communication its horrors and deformity become more apparent in the eyes of the world, is fixing a deep disgrace upon the character of their country, and paralyzing the beneficial influence which might otherwise flow from it as an example of a well-regulated free government. May each American citizen who is desirous of washing away this disgrace, to whatever division of the anti-slavery host he may attach himself, ever bear in mind that the cause is of too tremendous and pressing a nature to admit of his wasting his time in censuring and impeding the progress of those who may array themselves under a somewhat different standard from his own; and that any energies thus wasted, which belong to the one great object, so far as human instrumentality is concerned, is not only deferring the day of freedom to two and a half millions of his countrymen, but inasmuch as the fall of American slavery must be the death-blow to the horrid system, wherever it exists, the result of the struggle here involves the slavery or freedom of millions in other parts of the world, as well as the continuance or suppression of that slave-trade, to the foreign branch of which alone more than one thousand victims are daily sacrificed; and in reference to which it has justly been said, 'that all that has been borne to Africa of the boasted improvements of civilized life, is a masterly skill in the contrivance, and an unhesitating daring in the commission of crimes, which the mind of the savage was too simple to devise, and his heart too gentle to execute.' There are no doubtful indications that it is the will of Him, who has the hearts of all at His disposal, that, either in judgment or in mercy, this dreadful system shall ere long cease. It is not for us to say why, in His inscrutable wisdom, He has thus far permitted one portion of His creatures so cruelly to oppress another; or by what instrumentality He will at length redress the wrongs of the poor, and the oppression of the needy; but should the worst fears of one of your most distinguished citizens, who in view of this subject, acknowledged that he 'trembled for his country, when he remembered that God was just,' be finally realized, may each one of you feel that no exertions on his part have been wanting to avert the Divine displeasure, and preserve your land from those calamities which, in all ages, have rebuked the crimes of nations.

"Your sincere friend,

"JOSEPH STURGE.

"Boston, Seventh Month 31st, 1841."

My dear friend John G. Whittier, whose pleasant company and invaluable aid I had enjoyed, as much as his health would permit, during my stay in the United States, kindly accompanied me on board. Had he been less closely identified with the transactions of which the present volume is a record, I should have felt it due to his station among the earliest and most distinguished advocates of the anti-slavery cause in America, to attempt some delineation, however imperfect, of that rare and consecrated union of consistent Christian character, fine talents, and sound and impartial judgment, which give him so much weight in the councils of his fellow-laborers. We set sail about noon on the 1st of the Eighth month, (August,) and arrived off Liverpool about eleven o'clock, P.M. on the 13th, which interval included ten hours delay at Halifax. We had about ninety passengers from Halifax to Liverpool, and with the exception of a severe gale on the 10th, almost amounting to a hurricane, we had a very favorable voyage. The time from Halifax to within sight of the light house off the south coast of Ireland was announced to be only nine days and thirteen minutes.

One of my fellow passengers had recently been traveling in the southern States, and showed me a letter given to him as a curiosity at the post office at Charleston, South Carolina, which was addressed by a slave to her husband, but from insufficient direction had never reached its destination. It was to convey the tidings that she was about to be sold to the South, and begging him, in simple and affecting terms, to come and see her, as they would never meet again. Another of the passengers, who had also been a fellow voyager with my friend Joseph John Gurney, had recently travelled in Texas. He was strongly impressed with the evils likely to result from the proposed recognition of that government by Great Britain. In consequence of the promising aspect of these negotiations between General Hamilton and Lord Palmerston in favor of Texas, the paper money issued by that piratical government, and which had not been previously negotiable for more than one tenth of its nominal value, rapidly rose. The Texas republic, in his opinion, could not secure a permanence without British recognition.

Many planters, with their slaves, have emigrated thither to escape their creditors from the border States, and the republic has been lavish of grants of land to men of capital and influence, to induce them to settle within its limits. My informant considered the state of society to be as bad as it well could be, and continue to exist. The white inhabitants are living not only in fear of hostile Indians, but in fear of each other.

From a late letter of a friend in America, I make the following extract relative to the present condition of Texas.

"To give thee some adequate idea of the importance of that beautiful republic of Texas, which Lord Palmerston and the late Whig government of England took under their especial protection, I will just refer to the statistics of the late election of its President. The successful candidate, General Houston, a man notorious for his open contempt for all the decencies of civilized society,—brutal, brawling, profane, and licentious,—received somewhat rising five thousand votes: his competitor, Judge Burnet, between two and three thousand,—a vote smaller by thousands than that of our little county of Essex, in Massachusetts. Late accounts from Texas inform us that gangs of organized desperadoes, under the names of moderators and regulators, are traversing its territory, perpetrating the most brutal outrages. In one instance they seized a respectable citizen who dared to express his dissatisfaction with their proceedings, hurried him into the forest, and deliberately dug his grave before his eyes, intending to bury him alive! The miserable victim, horrified by the prospect of such a fate, broke away from his tormentors, and attempted to escape, but was shot down and instantly killed! Such a congregation as Texas presents was never, I suspect, known, save in that city into which the Macedonian monarch gathered and garnered, in one scoundrel community, the vagabond rascality of his kingdom.

"Thou would'st be amused to read an article, which has made its appearance in the Houston Telegraph—a Texian paper—in which the editor says, 'that while we deeply commiserate the situation of our sister republic, in regard to the political scourge of abolitionism, it is pleasing to reflect that our country enjoys a complete immunity from its effects. Indeed we may with safety declare, that throughout the whole extent of our country, not a single abolitionist can be found.' He goes on to say that this induces many of the southern planters to emigrate to Texas, who, he remarks, 'will necessarily look to Texas, as the Hebrews did to the promised land, for a refuge and home.' It will thus be seen that Texas is the promised land of the patriarchal slave-holders of the southern States. When hunted from every other quarter of the globe by the inexorable spirit of abolition, when even Cuba and Brazil cease to afford them an asylum—when slave-holding shall be every where else as odious and detestable as midnight larceny, or highway robbery,—Texas alone, uninfected and secure, is to open its gates of refuge to the persecuted Calhouns and McDuffies, and their northern allies in church and state—the San Marino of slavery, dissevered from the world's fanaticism—isolated and apart, like the floating air-island of Dean Swift."

The following extract from a recent New York paper gives an equally deplorable representation of the society in Texas.

"The pestilent influence of the recent horrible murders on the Arkansas, and other United States' rivers, has caused the practice of lynching to break forth with renewed fury in Texas, where it had apparently slept for the previous year. And we find recorded in the Texas papers nearly a dozen of these murders that have occurred, and undoubtedly there have been more than as many more. In Shelby county two citizens have been shot down, and several houses burned by a party of outlaws. In Red River two men have been hanged as horse-thieves, without judge or jury. In Washington county one man has been shot down, under the pretence that he was a murderer. In Austin county two men were killed, and two hostile parties were in arms for several days, taking the law into their own hands. In Jefferson county two men have been killed, and the house of one of them burnt to the ground by a party of self-styled 'regulators.' And all this in the space of a year."

Several of my fellow-passengers were from Cuba, and some of them slave-holders by their own admission. With one or two of those who could speak English, I had much conversation on the abolition of slavery. They concurred with apparent sincerity in the desire that the slave trade might be effectually suppressed. They seemed to consider that this trade was promoted by the mother country as one means of preventing the colony from aspiring to independence. They admitted the abstract injustice of slavery, and one remarked, that a difference of the color of the skin was a misfortune, not a crime. They were not, however, disposed to entertain a thought of emancipation, without being fully compensated for their slaves.

I had again the pleasure of observing on this voyage, the benefits of the change of system with regard to the supply of wines and spirits, each passenger paying for what he consumes, instead of his fare including the privilege of drinking ad libitum. One of the stewards told me the quantity consumed was little more than one-tenth as much as under the former system.

I cannot conclude my narrative more gratefully to my own feelings than by a tribute to the upright and conscientious officer who commanded the vessel. On the first day of the week, the only one we spent at sea, the passengers, and as many of the servants as could conveniently attend, assembled morning and evening in the saloon, for the purpose of religious worship. Lord Frederick Fitzclarence, one of the passengers, officiating as a minister of the English Establishment; and every evening a similar opportunity was offered in the fore cabin to all who were inclined to be present. The captain firmly resisted the introduction of cards on the first day of the week, and in his whole conduct manifested an anxiety not only for the temporal comfort and safety, but for the spiritual interests of those under his care. Would that all captains of vessels, invested as they are with such authority and influence over the passengers and crews, were like-minded with my friend Captain McKellar.

I disembarked at Liverpool early in the morning on the 14th of Eighth month, (August,) 1841.

GENERAL OBSERVATIONS

The reader who has accompanied me thus far, will not need to be informed that I have designedly omitted many of those remarks on scenery, manners, and institutions, which were naturally suggested to my own mind by a retrospect of my sojourn in the United States. On various subjects of great interest and importance, it would be difficult for me to add anything new or valuable to the information contained in other and well known works; while on those points to which my attention was chiefly directed, I have endeavored, as far as practicable, to incorporate the results of my inquiries in the preceding narrative. There remain, however, a few observations, for which, having found no appropriate place, I would bespeak attention in a concluding chapter.

In the Northern States, education, in the common acceptation of the term, may be considered as universal; in illustration of which it may be mentioned, that on the occasion of the late census, not a single American adult in the State of Connecticut, was returned as unable to read or write. Funds for education are raised by municipal taxation in each town or district, to such an amount as the male adults may decide. Their public schools are universally admitted to be well conducted and efficient, and combine every requisite for affording a sound, practical, elementary education to the children of the less affluent portion of the community. I need scarcely add that in a republican government, this important advantage being conceded, the road to wealth and distinction, or to eminence of whatever kind, is thrown open to all of every class without partiality—the colored alone excepted.

The following extract from a letter received since my return from a respected member of the Society of Friends, residing in Worcester, Massachusetts, will give a lively idea of the general diffusion and practical character of education in the New England States.

"The public schools of the place, like those throughout the State, are supported by a tax, levied on the people by themselves, in their primary assemblies or town meetings, and they are of so excellent a character as to have driven other schools almost entirely out from among us. They are so numerous as to accommodate amply all the children, of suitable age to attend. They are graduated from the infant school, where the A B C is taught, up to the high school for the languages and mathematics, where boys are fitted for the University, and advanced so far, if they choose, as to enter the University one or two years ahead. These schools are attended by the children of the whole population promiscuously; and, in the same class we find the children of the governor and ex-governor of the State, and those of their day-laborers, and of parents who are so poor that their children are provided with books and stationery from the school fund. Under this system, we have no children who do not acquire sufficient school learning to qualify them for transacting all the business which is necessary in the ordinary pursuits of life. A child growing up without school learning would be an anomaly with us. All standing thus on a level, as to advantages, talent is developed, wherever it happens to be; and neither wealth nor ancestral honors give any advantage in the even-handed contest which may here be waged for distinction. It is thus that we find, almost uniformly, that our first men, either in government or the professions, are the sons of comparatively poor and obscure persons. In places where the wealthier portion of the community have placed their children in select schools, they are found much less likely to excel, than when placed in contact and collision with the mass, where they are compelled to come in competition with those whose physical condition prepares them for mental labor, and whose situation in society holds forth every inducement to their exertions. To this system, which is co-eval with the foundation of the State, I attribute, in a great degree, that wonderful energy of character which distinguishes the people of New England, and which has filled the world with the evidences of their enterprise."

The preceding statements refer to New England, the oldest portion of the free States. The more recently settled Northern and Western States are necessarily less advanced, yet their educational statistics would probably bear comparison with any country in the world, except the most favored portion of their own. In the slave States the aspect of things affords a striking contrast. Not only is the slave population, with but few exceptions, in a condition of heathen barbarism, a condition which it is the express object of those laws of the slave States, forbidding, under the heaviest penalties, the instruction of the slaves, to perpetuate; but the want of common elementary education among large numbers of the privileged class is notorious. Compare Virginia with Massachusetts,—"The American Almanac for the year 1841, states, (page 210) there are supposed to be hardly fewer than 30,000 adult white persons in Virginia who cannot read and write!" An able writer gives the following facts.

"No one of the slave States has probably so much general education as Virginia. It is the oldest of them—has furnished one half of the Presidents of the United States—has expended more upon her University than any State in the Union has done during the same time upon its colleges—sent to Europe nearly twenty years since for her most learned professors; and in fine, has far surpassed every other slave State in her efforts to disseminate education among her citizens; and yet, the Governor of Virginia in his message to the legislature, (Jan. 7, 1839) says, that of four thousand six hundred and fourteen adult males in that State, who applied to the county clerks for marriage licences in the year 1837, one thousand and forty seven were unable to write their names." The governor adds, "these statements, it will be remembered are confined to one sex: the education of females, it is to be feared, is in a condition of much greater neglect."—The editor of the Virginia Times published at Wheeling, in his paper of January 23d, 1839, says,—"We have every reason to suppose that one fourth of the people of the State cannot write their names, and they have not of course any other species of education."[A]

A: "American Slavery as it is," page 187.

The destitution of the means of moral and religious improvement is in like manner very great. A recent number of the "Monthly Extracts from the correspondence of the American Bible Society," contains the following extract from the 28th annual report of the Virginia Bible Society: "The sub-sheriff of one of our Western Counties stated the following fact to your agent. A jury was to be empannelled in a remote settlement of this country—he happened to have left his home without a Bible—there was no Bible in the house where the jury was to sit, and the sheriff travelled fourteen miles calling at every house, before he found a Bible. Pious surveyors stated to your agent that they had traversed every settlement in a remote section of one or two of our south western counties, that they had frequently inquired among the settlers for a Bible, but had never seen or heard of one in a region, say sixty miles by fifty."

There are few things more striking in the free States than the number and commodiousness of the places of worship. In the New England States, however general the attendance might be, none would be excluded for want of room. The other means or accompaniments of religious instruction are in the same abundance. How is it possible to evade the conclusion that Christianity flourishes most, when it is unencumbered and uncorrupted by state patronage? What favored portion of the United Kingdom could compare its religious statistics with New England?

Religion and morality, viewed on the broad scale, are cause and effect—a remark which is fully borne out in the Northern States, and in no instance more remarkably exemplified than in the spread of temperance. A few years ago the consumption of ardent spirits, and other intoxicating drinks, was as general as in England, and the effects even more conspicuous and debasing. It is now very rare, in the free States, to see a drunken person, even in the most populous cities. At the large hotels, as far as my observation extended, it is the exception, not the rule, to take any spirituous or fermented beverage at or after dinner; and no case of inebriety came under my notice in any of these establishments. I have already remarked, that some of the first hotels in the principal cities are established on the strictest temperance principles. I believe, in private hospitality, intoxicating drinks are, in like manner, very much discarded. At the tables of members of the Society of Friends, it is very rare to see either wine or malt liquor introduced; while, as already noticed, the selling, using, or giving ardent spirits is so great an offence as to be made the subject of church discipline. This is, by no means, one of the "peculiarities" of "Friends," as I believe it may be generally stated that the same practices, in most other Christian communities, would be considered as quite incompatible with a profession of religion.

The effects of this great reformation are not confined to the United States, although the change hitherto has been much more gradual in my native country; not so, however, in Ireland, now, by a happy reverse, a scene of light and promise, amidst surrounding gloom and depression. Of the American facts I have to record, connected with the temperance movement, the most grateful is the striking contrast that is exhibited in the Irish emigrants. By the divine blessing on Theobald Mathew's benevolent labors, they have generally forsaken their besetting sin of drunkenness in their native land, and if compelled to seek the means of subsistence in another country, they now at least do not carry with them habits that tend irresistibly to destitution and degradation. The Irish movement is likewise re-acting most beneficially on the native Irish, who have long been settled in America, and who are joining the total abstinence societies in great number, though hitherto the most intemperate part of the community.

In short, whether I consider the religious, the benevolent, or the literary institutions of the Northern States—whether I contemplate the beauty of their cities, or the general aspect of their fine country, in which nature every where is seen rendering her rich and free tribute to industry and skill—or whether I regard the general comfort and prosperity of the laboring population,—my admiration is strongly excited, and, to do justice to my feelings, must be strongly expressed. Probably there is no country where the means of temporal happiness are so generally diffused, notwithstanding the constant flow of emigrants from the old world; and, I believe there is no country where the means of religious and moral improvement are so abundantly provided—where facilities of education are more within the reach of all—or where there is less of extreme poverty and destitution.

As morals have an intimate connection with politics, I do not think it out of place here to record my conviction, that the great principle of popular control, which is carried out almost to its full extent in the free states, is not only beautiful in theory, but that it is found to work well in practice. It is true that disgraceful scenes of mob violence and lynch-law have occurred; but perhaps not more frequently than popular outbreaks in Great Britain; while, generally, the supremacy of law and order have been restored, without troops, or special commissions, or capital punishments. It is also true, that these occurrences are, for the most part, directly traceable, not to the celebrated declaration of the equal and inalienable right of all men to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness, which is the fundamental principle of the constitution; but to the flagrant violation of that principle in the persons of the colored population, of whom those in most of the free states are actually or virtually deprived of political rights; and the rest, constituting a majority of the population in some of the Southern States, are held in abject slavery. The corruptions and disorders that obscure the bright example of the American people, and detract from the estimation in which their institutions and policy would otherwise be held, generally spring from this source. So long as slavery and distinction of color exist, America will always be pointed at with the finger of scorn, for her flagrant violation of all truth and consistency. But let us not forget that this odious institution is the disgraceful legacy of a monarchy—that it is no necessary effect of republican institutions, but the reverse. Our quarrel, therefore, is not with the declaration of rights, but that this celebrated declaration should be regarded, in the instance of one class in the community, as a mere rhetorical flourish, and should thus be deprived of its legitimate practical effect.

The great feature of the political arrangements of the free States is, the absence of the aristocratic element. A pure despotism in the hands of one man has seldom been seen, except in the instances of those renowned military chiefs, whom a retributive Providence has at intervals employed as the scourge of guilty nations. An aristocracy under various forms and names, has usually been the governing power, and as the too frequent result, laws have been made and administered for the benefit of the few, and not for the many. Yet the United States of North America exhibit, however, notwithstanding their political theory to the contrary, an aristocracy of the worst kind, an aristocracy of color; in the free States of the many against the few, in affirming these to be a degraded race, as long as African blood runs in their veins; and in the slave States, for a no better reason, reducing them even when they are the majority; to the condition of brute beasts, to be held and sold as goods and chattels. And this leads me to observe that the writer who mistakes the general government of the confederacy, with its limited scope and powers, for the chief source of laws and administration in the separate States will unavoidably present a confused and distorted representation of existing facts. Each State constitutes within itself a distinct republic, virtually independent of the general government, so long as its legislation does not conflict with the specific articles of the constitutional compact; all the rights and powers of sovereignty, not specifically delegated to the Government in that instrument, being retained by the States. Hence nothing can present a wider contrast than the slavery-blackened code of South Carolina, and the statutes of Massachusetts, characterized by republican simplicity and equality.

The preceding observations in favor of the democratic institutions of the northern States, are therefore to be understood as of local application; and I would explicitly admit that a well-ordered and a well-working government on such principles must in a great measure depend upon the amount of virtue and intelligence in the community: but while a government which is based upon the principles of impartial justice requires a virtuous people properly to administer it, it has, I believe, within itself one of the most powerful elements for the formation of such a community.

On the subject of peace my inquiries elicited an almost uniformly favorable response. If we except those who would encourage the war spirit, from hopes of sharing in the plunder, or those to whom it would open up the path to distinction and emolument, there are comparatively few who do not desire the maintenance of peace. In the religious part of the community, there is a rapidly spreading conviction of the unchristian character of war, in every shape; and the President, in his late message to Congress, in stating that "the time ought to be regarded as having gone by when a resort to arms is to be esteemed as the only proper arbiter of national differences", has expressed the sentiments of the great bulk of the intelligent citizens of the United States. I believe also that the majority would be found willing to assent to any reasonable and practical measure that should preclude the probability of an appeal to arms, or of keeping up what are absurdly called "peace establishments" of standing armies and appointed fleets for the protection of national safety or honor. The late excitements on the Boundary and McLeod questions were confined to comparatively few of the population, and the report of them was magnified by distance.

But a far stronger guaranty for the permanence of international peace than any treaties, will be found in the interchange of mutual benefits by commerce. For this reason he who is successful in promoting a free and unchecked commerce, is the benefactor, not of his own country alone, but of the world at large. There are few countries where in practice free trade is more fully carried out than in the United States, but in theory the true doctrine of this subject is only in part adopted by her statesmen and leading minds. They are willing to trade on equal terms, but will meet prohibition with prohibition. Here undoubtedly they mistake their real interests, but though such a policy will not advance the prosperity of America, it will inflict tremendous and lasting injury on Great Britain. Whatever the event, we cannot complain. The terms offered by the United States, though not wise, on an enlarged view of her own interests, are yet reciprocal, and therefore fair between nation and nation. If, however, I possessed any influence with the enlightened citizens of North America, I should be in no common degree anxious to exert it against those false views of trade and commerce which distort alike the maxims and the policy of her rulers. Their manufactures flourish, not in consequence of protection, but in defiance of it. With such an extended coast, and such facilities of internal communication, prohibition is impossible. The manufactures of England are excluded, not by the revenue laws of the States, but by the corn laws of Great Britain, which forbid the British manufacturer to take in exchange the only article of value his American customer has to spare; a prohibition which, unhappily for the people of this country, our government has power to enforce. The prohibitory system is, to a great extent, impracticable in the United States; and just so far as it should be found practicable, it would prove injurious, by creating fictitious and dependent interests, which, in the course of time, would become insupportably burdensome to the commonwealth, and eventually would have to be relinquished at the cost of a fearful amount of individual distress and national suffering. Legitimate commerce is that department of the national welfare, in which it is the business of statesmanship to do nothing but remove the impediments of its own creating in past times. In all other respects, commercial legislation is a nuisance; and if under some circumstances trade is found to flourish concurrently with such interference, the fact is due either to the restrictions and regulations being practically inoperative, or more frequently, to the high profits arising from unexhausted resources, in the absence of competition, enabling commerce to advance in spite of impediments; in the same way as cultivation by slave labor, notwithstanding its expensiveness and inordinate waste, enables the first planter on a virgin soil, and with an open market for his produce, to roll in his carriage, though beggary is to be the fate of the second or third generation of his descendants.

In giving the preceding representation of the religious, the moral, and the intellectual elevation of the population of the Northern States of the Union, I have indicated the source we must look to for the abolition of slavery, to which it is now time to turn our attention, for no American question can be discussed, into which this important subject does not largely enter.

Light and darkness, truth and falsehood, are not more in opposition than Christianity and slavery. If the religion that is professed in the free States be not wholly a dead letter,—if the moral and intellectual light which they appear to enjoy be indeed light, and not darkness,—then the abolition of slavery is certain, and cannot be long delayed. In order to make this apparent, as well as to vindicate my own proceedings in the United States, it is incumbent on me to show, that the great contest, for the abolition of American slavery, is to be decided in the free States, by the power of public opinion. I have distinctly admitted, that the confederated republics have each their independent sovereignty. Neither the free States, nor the general Government, can perhaps constitutionally abolish slavery in any one of the existing slave States. Yet there are certain objects clearly within the limits of the constitutional power of the general Government, such as the suppression of the internal slave-trade, and the abolition of slavery in the district of Columbia, for which it is undeniably lawful and constitutional for every American citizen to strive; and the attainment of which would suffice to cripple, and ultimately destroy slavery in every part of the Union. The slave-holding power is so sensible of this, that all its united strength is employed to retain that control over the general Government, which it has exercised from the date of the independence, and never more despotically than at the present time. Amidst the difficulties which beset, and the dangers which threatened the country, at the period of the formation of the constitution, the southern States dictated such a compromise as they thought fit; and, with the great principles of liberty paraded on the face of the declaration of independence, came into the Union on the express understanding that those principles should be perpetually violated in their favor. Of the details of this compromise, by far the most important, and one which has mainly contributed to consolidate the political supremacy of the south, is the investiture of the slave masters with political rights, in proportion to the amount of their slave property. Every five slaves confer three votes on their owner; though, in other points of view, a slave is a mere chattel—an article of property and merchandize,—yet, in this instance, and in criminal proceedings against him, his personality is recognized, for the express object of adding to the weight of his chains, and increasing the power of his oppressor.

The North, in voting away the rights and freedom of the laboring population of the South, surrendered its own liberty. The haughty slave-holding masters of the great confederacy have from the beginning chosen the Presidents, and the high officers of state, and have controlled the policy of the Government, from a question of peace or war, to the establishment of a tariff or a bank. In the executive department they have dictated all appointments, from a letter-carrier to an ambassador; an amusing illustration of which I find in my recent correspondence. A late member of the Massachusetts legislature, writes on the Eighth Month (August) 26, 1841:

"One instance of the all-pervading espionage of the slave power I may mention. The newly appointed postmaster of Philadelphia employed, among his numerous clerks and letter-carriers, Joshua Coffin, who, some three years ago, aided in restoring to liberty a free colored citizen of New York, who had been kidnapped and sold into slavery. The appointment of the postmaster not being confirmed, he wrote to his friends in Congress to inquire the reason, and was told that the delay was occasioned by the fact that he had employed Coffin as one of his letter-carriers! Coffin was immediately dismissed, and the senate in a few days confirmed the appointment! Is not this a pitiful business?"

If the reader, who wishes further information, will consult William Jay's work, entitled "A View of the Action of the Federal Government in behalf of Slavery," he will find ample historical proof that the internal and external administration of the Union—legislative, executive, and diplomatic—has been employed, without any deviation from consistency, to subserve the interests of the slave-holding States. Yet these States are, in population, numerically weaker than those of the North, and inferior, to a far greater degree, in wealth, intelligence, and the other elements of political power. They are strong only in the compactness of their union, while the citizens of the free States are divided in interest and opinion. Here, then, is presented a distinct and legitimate object for those of the abolitionists who regard their political rights as a trust for the benefit of the oppressed and helpless, to combine the scattered and divided power of the North into a united phalanx, which shall wrest the administration of the Federal Union from the slave-holding interest, and shall purify the general Government from the contamination of slavery, by reversing its general policy on that subject, and by the adoption of the specific measures before mentioned; while, in the States in which they respectively reside, the abolitionists feel it to be their duty to exert themselves, to wipe away from the statute book every vestige of that barbarism which makes political, civil, or religious rights depend upon the color of the skin.

Yet more important is it, however, to bring the moral force of the North to bear against slavery, by reforming the prevailing public sentiment of the religious, moral, and intelligent portion of the community. Here again, one of the most sagacious leaders of the pro-slavery party, J.C. Calhoun, has descried the danger from afar, and has publicly proclaimed it in the senate of the United States, by vehemently deprecating the anti-slavery proceedings, not as intended to provoke the slaves to a servile war, but as a crusade against the character of the slave-holders.

Although the different States are distinct governments, their geographical boundaries are mere lines upon the map; their inhabitants speak the same language, and enjoy a communion of citizenship all over the Union. The North Eastern States have by far the greater part of the whole commerce of the Union, and are the medium through which the planter exchanges his cotton for provisions and clothing for his slaves, implements for his agriculture, and his own family supplies. These commercial ties create a direct and extensive pro-slavery interest in the North. Again, the planter is yet more dependent on the North for education for his children, and for the gratification of his own intellectual wants, as the slave-holding region has few colleges, and those of secondary reputation; while I believe it has no periodical of higher pretension than the political newspapers. The pro-slavery re-action in this way, on the seminaries of the North, and on the literature of the United States, is most sensibly felt.

Another powerful cause that contributes to leaven the entire population into one mind on the subject of slavery, is the double migration that annually takes place of people of the Southern States to the North, in summer, and of the inhabitants of the free States to the South in winter. Hence follow family alliances, the interchange of hospitalities, and a fusion of sentiments, so that the slavery interest spreads its countless ramifications through every corner of the free north.

Another cause, and perhaps the most powerful of all, is the community of religious fellowship in leading denominations. The Episcopalians, the Methodists, the Baptists, and the Presbyterians of two schools, are severally but one body, all over the Union, and as a matter of course, all are tainted with slavery, and for consistency's sake, make common cause against abolition. The pamphlet of James G. Birney, entitled "The American Churches the Bulwarks of American Slavery,"[A] offers the amplest proof that the Methodist Episcopal, the Baptist, the Presbyterian, and the Anglican Episcopal Churches are committed, both in the persons of their eminent ministers, and by resolutions passed in a church capacity, to the monstrous assertion that slavery, so far from being a moral evil, which it is the duty of the church to seek to remove, is a Christian institution resting on a scriptural basis; this assertion is repeated in the numerous quotations of the pamphlet, in a variety and force of expression that show the utterers were resolved not to leave their meaning in the smallest doubt. Indeed, it might be supposed, from the perusal of this pamphlet, that the suppression of abolitionism, if not the maintenance of slavery, was one of the first duties of the Christian churches in America.

A: Published by Ward & Co., Paternoster-row, London.

The following extracts are offered in illustration:—

THE METHODIST EPISCOPAL CHURCH.—"Resolved, That it is the sense of the Georgia Annual Conference, that slavery, as it exists in the United States, is not a moral evil."

"The Rev. Wilbur Fisk, D.D., late President of the (Methodist) Wesleyan University in Connecticut—'The New Testament enjoins obedience upon the slave as an obligation due to a present rightful authority.'"

"Rev. E.D. Simms, Professor in Randolph Macon College, a Methodist Institution—'Thus we see, that the slavery which exists in America, was founded in right.'"

"The Rev. William Winans, of Mississippi, in the General Conference, in 1836—'Yes, sir, Presbyterians, Baptists, Methodists, should be slaveholders,—yes, he repeated it boldly—there should be members, and deacons, and ELDERS and BISHOPS, too, who were slave-holders.'"

"The Rev. J.H. Thornwell, at a public meeting, held in South Carolina, supported the following resolution—'That slavery, as it exists in the South, is no evil, and is consistent with the principles of revealed religion; and that all opposition to it arises from a misguided and fiendish fanaticism, which we are bound to resist in the very threshold.'"

"Rev. Mr. Crowder, of Virginia, at the Annual Conference in Baltimore, 1840—'In its moral aspect, slavery was not only countenanced, permitted, and regulated by the Bible, but it was positively instituted by GOD HIMSELF—he had, in so many words, ENJOINED IT.'"

THE BAPTIST CHURCH—"Memorial of the Charleston Baptist Association, to the Legislature of South Carolina:

"'The right of masters to dispose of the time of their slaves has been distinctly recognized by the Creator of all things, who is surely at liberty to vest the right of property over any object in whomsoever he pleases.'"

"Rev. R. Furman, D.D., of South Carolina—'The right of holding slaves is clearly established in the Holy Scriptures, both by precept and example.'"

"The late Rev. Lucius Bolles, D.D., of Massachusetts, Cor. Sec. Am. Bap. Board for Foreign Missions, (1834.)—'There is a pleasing degree of union among the multiplying thousands of Baptists throughout the land.... Our Southern brethren are generally, both ministers and people, slave-holders.'"

PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH.—"Resolution of Charleston Union Presbytery—'That, in the opinion of this Presbytery, the holding of slaves, so far from being a SIN in the sight of God, is no where condemned in his holy word.'"

"Rev. Thomas S. Witherspoon, of Alabama, writing to the Editor of the Emancipator, says—'I draw my warrant from the Scriptures of the Old and New Testament, to hold the slave in bondage. The principle of holding the heathen in bondage is recognized by God.... When the tardy process of the law is too long in redressing our grievances, we of the South have adopted the summary remedy of Judge Lynch—and really, I think it one of the most wholesome and salutary remedies for the malady of Northern fanaticism, that can be applied.'"

"Rev. Robert N. Anderson, of Virginia—'Now dear Christian brethren, I humbly express it as my earnest wish, that you quit yourselves like men. If there be any stray goat of a minister among you, tainted with the bloodhound principles of abolitionism, let him be ferreted out, silenced, excommunicated, and left to the public to dispose of him in other respects.'"

THE PROTESTANT EPISCOPAL CHURCH.—"John Jay, himself an Episcopalian—'She has not merely remained a mute and careless spectator of this great conflict of truth and justice with hypocrisy and cruelty, but her very priests and deacons may be seen ministering at the altar of slavery, offering their talents and influence at its unholy shrine, and openly repeating the awful blasphemy, that the precepts of our Savior sanction the system of American slavery.'"

In page 25 is the following:—

"The Rev. James Smylie, A.M., of the Amite Presbytery, Mississippi, in a pamphlet, published by him a short time ago, in favor of American slavery, says:—'If slavery be a sin, and advertising and apprehending slaves, with a view to restore them to their masters, is a direct violation of the Divine law; and if the buying, selling, or holding a slave, for the sake of gain, is a heinous sin and scandal; then, verily, three-fourths of all the Episcopalians, Methodists, Baptists, and Presbyterians, in eleven States of the Union, are of the devil. They 'hold,' if they do not buy and sell slaves, and, with few exceptions, they hesitate not to 'apprehend and restore' runaway slaves, when in their power.'"

Yet, in the face of evidence so overwhelming as this, showing how the whole moral atmosphere of the Northern States is tainted with pro-slavery corruption, the abolitionists are frequently taunted with the question, what has the North to do with slavery? It is, however, a part of their vocation to bear contempt and reproach. They know they are at the right end of the lever, though at some apparent distance from the object to be moved. Their mission is to correct public opinion in the free States. Let us suppose, for a moment, this object attained—the whole slave-holding portion of the churches cut off, as a diseased and corrupt excrescence; the national literature purified, and the entire community pervaded by sound Christian feeling—a feeling which should abhor all participation, in word or deed, with the guilt of slavery; and how could the South maintain, for a single day, the perpetual warfare, which would be thus waged against her from without, and seconded by alarmed consciences in her own citadel?

The rise of the present abolition movement dates from the year 1832, when a few persons met at Philadelphia, and adopted and signed a declaration of their sentiments. He, however, who would trace anti-slavery sentiments to their source, must go back to the first era of Christianity, and to the authoritative promulgation of the Divine law of love by the lips of the Savior of mankind himself. In the darkest times, since that period, the true doctrine of the unlawfulness of slavery has never been wholly lost, being in fact a part of the imperishable substance of vital Christianity.

From 1832 until the division referred to in an early portion of this work, the anti-slavery societies multiplied with extraordinary rapidity. The following account of the present state of the cause is furnished by my friend, John G. Whittier.

"He who, at the present time, judges of the progress of the anti-slavery cause in the United States, by statistics of the formation of new societies, or the activity and efficiency of the old, will obtain no adequate idea of the truth. The unfortunate divisions among the American abolitionists, and, the difficulty of uniting, for any continuous effort, those who differ widely as to the proper means to be used, and measures to be pursued, have, in a great measure, changed the direction and manifestation of anti-slavery feeling and action. Thus, while public opinion, in all the free States, is manifestly approximating to abolition, and new converts to its principles are daily avowing themselves, it is exceedingly rare to hear of the formation of a new anti-slavery society, and there are few accessions to those which are already in existence. Yet the fresh recipients of the truths of anti-slavery doctrine find abundant work for their hands to do, even without the pale of organized societies, in purifying the churches with which they are connected, and in counteracting the pro-slavery politics of the country.

"The two great political parties in the United States, radically disagreeing in almost all other points, are of one heart and mind, in opposing emancipation; not, I suppose, from any real affinity to, or love for the 'peculiar institution,' but for the purpose of securing the votes of the slave-holders, who, more consistent than the Northern abolitionists, refuse to support any man for office, who is not willing to do homage to slavery. The competition between these two parties for Southern favor is one of the most painful and disgusting spectacles which presents itself to the view of a stranger in the United States. To every well wisher of America it must be a matter of interest and satisfaction to know, that there is a growing determination in the free States to meet the combination of slave-holders in behalf of slavery, by one of freemen in behalf of liberty; and thus compel the party politicians, on the ground of expediency, if not of principle, to break from the thraldom of the slave power, and array themselves on the side of freedom.

"It is an undoubted fact, that, at the present time, the various denominations of professing Christians in the United States are more deeply agitated by this question than at any former period. The publication of such books as Weld's 'Slavery as it is,' has unveiled the monstrous features of slavery to the Christian public in the Northern States. The blasphemous attempts of Southern professors and ministers, to defend their abominable practices upon Christian grounds, have powerfully re-acted against them at the North; and church after church, especially in New England, is taking the high stand of the late General Convention in London, in withholding its fellowship from slave-holders, and closing its pulpit against their preachers.

"Recent movements in the slave States themselves encourage the friends of freedom. In Kentucky, at the late election for state officers, one of the candidates, Cassius M. Clay, nephew of Henry Clay, avowed his opposition to pro-slavery principles in the strongest terms, and staked his election upon this avowal. He was warmly supported, and his opponent only succeeded by a small majority. Tennessee, in her mountain region, has many decided, uncompromising abolitionists, whose encouraging letters and statements have been published within the last year, in the Northern anti-slavery papers. The excellent work of Joseph John Gurney, on the West Indies, and Dr. Channing's late pamphlet, entitled "Emancipation," have been very widely circulated in many of the slave States; and, so far as can be ascertained, have been read with interest by the planters. The movements of English and French abolitionists have attracted general attention, and, in the Southern States, have awakened no small degree of solicitude.

"That baleful American peculiarity, prejudice against color, is evidently diminishing, under the influence of anti-slavery principles and practice; and the laws which have oppressed the free colored citizen are rapidly yielding to the persevering action of the abolitionists. Dr. Channing has not over-stated the fact, that the provision in the Federal Constitution, relative to the reclaiming of fugitive slaves, has been silently but effectually repealed by the force of public opinion, and the interposition of jury trial, in many of the free States. In Massachusetts, Vermont, Maine, and New York, with the exception of its slavery-ridden commercial emporium, the recovery of a slave by legalized kidnappers is entirely out of the question. In any one of these States, it would, to use the language of a New York mechanic, be exceedingly difficult to prove, to the satisfaction of a jury of honest freemen, that a man had been born 'contrary to the Declaration of Independence.' The frontiers of slavery are every where very much exposed, and all along the line of Maryland, Delaware, Kentucky, Virginia, and Missouri, the tide of self-emancipated men and women is pouring in upon the free States. I cannot give a better idea of the extent of this peculiar emigration, than by copying extracts from the Centreville Times, a paper published in Maryland:—

"'Free Negroes and Slaves.—When it is too late, the people of Maryland will begin to look for the means of protection in their slave property. We still say slave property; although, notwithstanding slaves are recognized as property by the constitution, without which recognition this confederation never would have been formed: yet such has been the effect of fanaticism and emancipation, of the intermeddling machinations of abolitionists, and the mischievous agency of free negroes—that the very owners of this species of property seem to begin to doubt whether slaves are property or not; and so much has its value become impaired, in the possession of those who reside contiguous to the non-slaveholding States, that the question has been raised, whether they are, in fact, worth keeping. Either discipline must be so much relaxed, as that the labor of the slave will scarcely pay for his support; or, if forced to labor no more than is even necessary to health and contentment, they abscond, and passing over the lines into a non-slaveholding State, are there concealed and protected. The number and the success of elopements leave no doubt of the establishment of a regular chain of posts, accessary to, and of systematic plans, deliberately organized, for their seduction and concealment. In these escapes, the free negroes are, for the most part, undoubtedly instrumental, as they are to most of the robberies committed by slaves. While at Easton, two weeks since, the slaves of two gentlemen made their escape, being each, if not recovered, a loss of one thousand dollars; and the firm persuasion was, that, in both cases, the runaways were furnished with passes by a free negro barber. Even if apprehended, these gentlemen will have been put to an expense of not less than three hundred dollars, and this without the slightest pretext of ill usage or unkindness.

"'The usual process is, when the owner is supposed to have despaired of his recovery, for some abolition or free negro lawyer to open a correspondence with the owner, representing the runaway to be in Canada, or otherwise beyond apprehension—coolly adding, with a highwayman's impudence, "take that or nothing;" and the owner has to put up with a total loss, or compromise for a third of the value of his property—the result in either case, proving an incentive to others to be off in like manner"'

*       *       *       *       *

"'There is not an interest that is not impaired, by the proximity of the free States, and the protection there afforded to slaves, and by the presence and intercommunion of the free with the slave negro. Even the value of land is diminished by it. Maryland suffers the disadvantages, without the advantages of a slave State. The disadvantage consists in the reputation, (the odium, north of the Delaware,) of being a slave State. The capitalists of the North refuse, on that account, to invest in Maryland lands, though they could buy land in Maryland for twenty dollars an acre, which is intrinsically worth more than theirs, which they could sell for an hundred. Our condition is, in fact, that of neither the one or the other; and, unless something can be done to counteract the progress of fanaticism on this subject, and that abuse of strength and heedless injustice which always follows irresponsible power, slavery in Maryland must cease, either by sale, while that right remains to the slave-holder, or ere long, by forced emancipation.

"'Virginia—once proud and independent Virginia, already half captive to the North—will soon take her place as the frontier slave State;—Maryland, with her Southern principles, eaten out by Northern men, will then assume to her the relation that Pennsylvania now bears to Maryland;—nay, it is but too obvious that, as things are now working, in process of time, and that not slowly, slavery must cease to exist in all the provision-growing States,—its northernmost line will be the line of the sugar, the rice, and the cotton culture,—the climate alone affording to the slave-holder that shelter which justice could not offer from the rapacity of his pursuers. Will the Southern still accept the shadow without the substance of equal and confederate powers? Be his relation, then, what it may—independent, confederate, or colonial—for one, we say, let it be defined. To the misery of the slave, let him not add the meanness of the dupe. Let him remember, that time and corruption have often achieved what would have defied the power of the sword;—in a word, let the slave-holder think, while yet, if yet, he has power to act.'"

I have now concluded an imperfect attempt to delineate the present state of the anti-slavery cause, on the North American continent, with incidental notices of the past history of the efforts of its friends. In regard to the future, my hopes are built on the continuance of these efforts, and on the concurrent aid afforded by the march of events, both in the United States and in the world at large, under the manifestly over-ruling power of that gracious Being, who sometimes employs human instrumentality to accomplish His purposes of mercy; but who works also Himself, by His immutable laws, and by the dispensations of His providence.

THE END.

APPENDIX.

APPENDIX A. p. 30.

ANTI-SLAVERY EPISTLE OF "FRIENDS" IN GREAT BRITAIN.

"From our Yearly Meeting held in London, by adjournment from the 20th of the 5th Month to the 29th of the same inclusive, 1840.

"To the Yearly Meetings of Friends on the Continent of North America.

"DEAR FRIENDS,—We think it a favor to us, and we accept it as an evidence that our Lord is mindful of us, that from one time to another, when thus assembled for mutual edification, and the renewing of our spiritual strength, we are in any small measure brought afresh to the enjoyment of that love which flows from God to man, through Jesus Christ our Savior; and under its blessed influence quickened to exercise of mind, not only for the health and prosperity of all those professing the same faith with ourselves, but for the coming of the kingdom of God upon earth, and the universal prevalence of righteousness and truth among men. This love has often brought us in Christian compassion and tenderness of spirit, deeply to feel for that portion of the great family of man subjected to the degradation and cruelty of slavery.

"We do not cease to rejoice with reverent thanksgiving to Almighty God, for the termination of this system of iniquity in the British Colonies. It was an act of justice on the part of our Legislature, and it has removed an enormous load of guilt from our beloved country; but in our rejoicing, we cannot, nor would we wish, to forget the hundreds of thousands of our brethren and sisters on the continent of America, and elsewhere, still detained in this abject condition, and liable to all the misery and oppression which it entails upon its victims.

"We have a strong conviction of the guilt and sinfulness of slavery, and its pernicious effects upon both the oppressed and the oppressor. That man should claim a right of property in the person of his fellow—that man should buy and sell his brother—that civil governments in their legislative enactments, should so far forget that 'God who giveth to all, life, and breath, and all things, and hath made of one blood all nations of men, for to dwell on all the face of the earth,' as to treat those who differ from them in the color of their skin, or any other external peculiarity, as beasts that perish, as chattels and articles of merchandise,—is in such direct violation of the whole moral law, and of the righteousness of the New Testament, and that in a day in which the principles of civil and religious liberty are so fully acknowledged in many of the nations of Christendom, may well excite both indignation and sorrow. And we cannot but regard it as such proof of hardness of heart, and perverted understanding, that we think it can be attributed to nothing short of the deceivableness of Satan working upon the fallen nature of man.

"It was, dear friends, in the gradual unfolding of that light in which the things that are reproved are made manifest, that your forefathers and ours, were brought to see the criminality of slavery. Thus enlightened, they could find no peace with God, until they had put away this evil of their doings from before his eyes—until by a conscientious discharge of their individual religious duty, they had restored those whom they held in bondage, to the full enjoyment of unqualified freedom. Under the influence of Divine wisdom, and by this faithfulness on the part of upright Friends, our religious society were brought to a united and settled judgment as a body, that personal slavery, both in its origin and its results, was so great an evil, that it could be tolerated by no mitigation of its hardship; and they felt the demands of equity to be so urgent upon them, that they were concerned to enjoin it upon Friends every where, by a ready compliance with such reasonable duty, to cease to do evil, by immediately releasing those they held as slaves. Their own hands being cleansed from this pollution, they felt it to be laid upon them, plainly and faithfully, to labor with their countrymen to bring them to a full understanding of the requiring of the Divine law, and to press it upon them to act up to its commandments. In the love of God, they were bold, both in your country and in ours, to plead the cause of the oppressed with those in power. We believe, and we would wish to speak of it with modesty and humility, that their faithfulness, in connection with the exertions of humane and devoted men of other Christian communities, were instrumental to bring about the abolition of the slave trade, as well as the extinction of slavery.

"We are reverently impressed with a sense of the prerogatives of the Great Head of the Church, to dispose of his servants, and to employ their time, and every talent which he has intrusted them, in such a way and manner as may consist with the purposes of his wisdom and love. It is the concern of this Meeting, that all our dear friends may carefully seek each to know his Lord's will, and to ascertain his individual path of duty; at the same time we desire to encourage one another to simple obedience to that which in the true light may be made manifest to them; and each to an unflinching and uncompromising avowal of his allegiance to his Lord in all things.

"We observe with satisfaction and comfort, in the epistles from your Yearly Meetings, which have been read in this Meeting, that there is a very general acknowledgment of concern on this important subject. It has often been a prominent feature in the brotherly correspondence which subsists between us. The expression of your encouragement in times past, has been helpful to us, and in the trials and difficulties you have had to endure, our hearts have been brought into fellow feeling with you. In this work of justice and love, we have long labored together. It has helped to strengthen the bond of our union; and in the fresh sense of this Christian fellowship, as it is now renewed amongst us, we offer you, beloved friends, the warm expression of our sympathy, and our strong desire for your help and encouragement. So far removed as we are from the scene of slavery, we are aware that we can but imperfectly appreciate either the sufferings of the slave, or the trials of those who live in the midst of such oppression; nor do we believe that we can fully appreciate either the labors of faithful Friends in your land, or the obstacles and discouragements which have been thrown in their way.

"The brief review we have taken of the history of our Society, in reference to this deeply interesting subject, and the feeling which prevails with us, under a sense of the enormity of the evil, urges us, and we desire that it may have the same effect upon you, still to persevere; and in every way that may be pointed out to us of the Lord, that we may continue to expose the evil of this unjust interference with the natural and social rights of man. Time is short, the day is spending fast with every one of us, and we had need to use diligence in the work of our day. We know the high authority under which we are commanded to 'love our neighbor as ourselves.' It is our desire on our own account, and in this exercise of mind we believe, dear friends, that you are one with us, that in our efforts to discharge the duties laid upon us, we may watch against a hopeless and distrustful spirit in times of discouragement. And O that in his great mercy and love towards his poor afflicted and helpless children, it might please Him to hasten the coming of that day, even to this generation of the enslaved in your land, in which every yoke shall be broken and the oppressed go free.

"If, in this righteous cause, we move in the leading of our Lord, we may humbly trust that he, with whom there is no respect of persons, who careth for the sparrows and feedeth the ravens, will grant to his dependent ones the help and support of his Holy Spirit, and enable them, in the face of every opposition, to do that which is made known to them as his will.

"With the enlarged views entertained by Friends of the mercy and love of our heavenly Father towards his children of every nation and tongue all the world over, we desire to press it upon you still to labor for the removal of all those unjust laws and limitations of right and privilege consequent upon the unwarrantable distinction of color—a distinction which has brought so much suffering upon those settled in different parts of the Union, and which we think must conduce to the strengthening of the prejudices of former years, and to retard the work of emancipation.

"It is affecting to us to think with what astonishing rapidity slavery is extending itself upon the Continent of North America, and how from year to year the slave population is increasing among you. Our spirits are oppressed with a sense of the magnitude of the evil; we tremble at the awful consequence which, in the justice and wisdom of Almighty God, may ensue to those who persist in the upholding of it. We commend the whole subject to your most serious attention, and desiring that divine wisdom may be near to help in your deliberations upon it,

"We bid you, affectionately, farewell.

"Signed in and on behalf of the Meeting, by

"GEORGE STACEY,

"Clerk to the Meeting this year."

APPENDIX B. p. 30.

EARLY EFFORTS OF "FRIENDS" IN BEHALF OF NEGRO SLAVES.

The following extract from Clarkson's "Memoirs of the Public and Private Life of William Penn," will show how the society of Friends, at a very early period, became unwarily entangled with the practice of slave holding; and also that the unchristian nature of it was immediately perceived by the more spiritual minded among them. It will serve also to prove that the testimony of Friends against slavery is no novelty, but is coeval with its rise as a distinct religious body. The measures proposed by William Penn on this subject, are an honorable testimony to the comprehensive benevolence of that truly great and magnanimous legislator, yet they fell short of the exigencies of the case, and of what Christian people required; consequently what good they directly effected was local and temporary. Viewed as the germ of subsequent anti-slavery enterprises of the last century, in Europe and America, their interest and importance cannot be too highly estimated.

"I must observe, that soon after the colony (Pennsylvania) had been planted, that is, in the year 1682, when William Penn was first resident in it, some few Africans had been imported, but that more had followed. At this time the traffic in slaves was not branded with infamy, as at the present day. It was considered, on the other hand, as favorable to both parties: to the American planters, because they had but few laborers, in comparison with the extent of their lands; and to the poor Africans themselves, because they were looked upon as persons redeemed out of superstition, idolatry, and heathenism. But though the purchase and sale of them had been admitted with less caution upon this principle, there were not wanting among the Quakers of Pennsylvania those who, soon after the introduction of them there, began to question the moral licitness of the traffic. Accordingly, at the Yearly Meeting for Pennsylvania, held in 1688, it had been resolved, on the suggestion of emigrants from Crisheim, who had adopted the principles of William Penn, that the buying, selling, and holding men in slavery, was inconsistent with the tenets of the Christian religion. In 1696, a similar resolution had been passed at the Yearly Meeting of the same religious society for the same province. In consequence, then, of these noble resolutions, the Quakers had begun to treat their slaves in a different manner from that of other people. They had begun to consider them as children of the same great Parent, to whom fraternal offices were due; and hence, in 1698, there were instances where they had admitted them into their meeting houses to worship in common with themselves.[A]

A: "I cannot help copying into a note an anecdote from Thomas Story's Journal for this year (1698). 'On the 13th,' says he, 'we had a pretty large meeting, where several were tendered, among whom were some negroes. And here I shall observe, that Thomas Simons having several negroes, one of them, as also several belonging to Henry White, had of late come to meetings, and having a sense of truth, several others thereway were likewise convinced, and like to do well. And the morning that we came from Thomas Simons's, my companion speaking some words of truth to his negro woman, she was tendered; and as I passed on horseback by the place where she stood weeping, I gave her my hand, and then she was much more broken: and finding the day of the Lord's tender visitation and mercy upon her, I spake encouragingly to her, and was glad to find the poor blacks so near the truth and reachable.' She stood there, looking after us and weeping, as long as we could see her. I had inquired of one of the black men how long they had come to meetings, and he said 'they had always been kept in ignorance, and disregarded as persons who were not to expect any thing from the Lord, till Jonathan Taylor, who had been there the year before, discoursing with them, had informed them that the grace of God, through Christ, was given also to them; and that they ought to believe in and be led and taught by it, and so might come to be good Friends, and saved as well as others. And on the next occasion, which was when William Ellis and Aaron Atkinson were there, they went to meetings, and several of them were convinced.' Thus one planteth and another watereth, but God giveth the increase."

"William Penn was highly gratified by the consideration of what has been done on this important subject. From the very first introduction of enslaved Africans into this province, he had been solicitous about their temporal and eternal welfare. He had always considered them as persons of the like nature with himself; as having the same desire of pleasure and the same aversion from pain; as children of the same Father, and heirs of the same promises. Knowing how naturally the human heart became corrupted and hardened by the use of power, he was fearful lest, in time, these friendless strangers should become an oppressed people. Accordingly, as his predecessor, George Fox, when he first visited the British West Indies, exhorted all those who attended his meetings for worship there, to consider their slaves as branches of their own families, for whose spiritual instruction they would one day or other be required to give an account, so William Penn had, on his first arrival in America, inculcated the same notion. It lay, therefore, now upon his mind to endeavor to bring into practice what had appeared to him to be right in principle. One of them was to try to incorporate the treatment of slaves, as a matter of Christian duty, into the discipline of his own religious society; and the other, to secure it among others in the colony of a different religious description, by a legislative act. Both of these were necessary. The former, however, he resolved to attempt first. The Society itself had already afforded him a precedent, by its resolutions in 1688 and in 1696, as before mentioned, and had thereby done something material in the progress of the work. It was only to get a minute passed upon their books to the intended effect. Accordingly, at the very first Monthly Meeting of the Society, which took place in Philadelphia in the present year, he proposed the subject. He laid before them the concern which had been so long upon his mind, relative to these unfortunate people; he pressed upon them the duty of allowing them as frequently as possible to attend their Meetings for worship, and the benefit that would accrue to both, by the instruction of them in the principles of the Christian religion. The result was, that a Meeting was appointed more particularly for the negroes, once every month; so that besides the common opportunities they had of collecting religious knowledge, by frequenting the places of worship, there was one day in the month, in which, as far as the influence of the Monthly Meeting extended, they could neither be temporally nor spiritually overlooked. At this Meeting also, he proposed means, which were acceded to, for a more frequent intercourse between Friends and the Indians; he (William Penn,) taking upon himself the charge of procuring interpreters, as well as of forwarding the means proposed."—Vol. II. pp. 218-222.

APPENDIX C. p. 34.

Report of the Committee of the Yearly Meeting of Friends, held in Philadelphia, appointed for the Gradual Civilization, &c., of the Indian Natives, presented to the meeting, Fourth Month 21st, 1841, and directed to be printed for the use of the members.

"TO THE YEARLY MEETING.

"The Committee charged with promoting the Gradual Improvement and Civilization of the Indian Natives, report:—

"That although they have given attention to this interesting concern, there are but few subjects in their operations, since the last report, which require notice. The Indians have been in a very unsettled condition during the past year, in consequence of the embarrassment and distress produced by the ratification of the treaty, and their uncertainty as to the best course to be pursued by them in their trying and perplexing circumstances. They still cling to the hope that they shall be able to ward off the calamity which threatens them, either through the favorable disposition of the new Administration and Senate, to give their case a re-hearing, or by an Appeal to the Supreme Court of the United States. Small as the hope afforded by these sources may appear to a disinterested observer, they are buoyed up by it, and seem as unwilling as ever, to look toward relinquishing their present homes.

"In a communication addressed to the committee, dated Tunesassah, Fifth Month 24th, 1840, signed by ten chiefs, they say, 'Although, the information of the ratification of the treaty is distressing to us, yet it is a satisfaction to hear from you, and to learn that you still remember us in our troubles, and are disposed to advise and assist us. The intelligence of the confirmation of the treaty caused many of our women to shed tears of sorrow. We are sensible that we stand in need of the advice of our friends. Our minds are unaltered on the subject of emigration.' Another dated Cold Spring, Twelfth Month 8th, 1840, holds this language: 'Brothers, we continue to feel relative to the treaty as we have ever felt. We cannot regard it as an act of our nation, or hold it to be binding on us. We still consider, that in justice, the land is at this time as much our own as ever it was. We have done nothing to forfeit our right to it; and have come to a conclusion to remain upon it as long as we can enjoy it in peace.' 'We trust in the Great Spirit: to Him we submit our cause.'

"A letter from the Senecas, residing at Tonawanda, was addressed to the Committee, from which the following extracts are taken:

"'By the help of the Great Spirit we have met in open council this 23d day of the Fifth Month, 1840, for the purpose of deliberating on the right course for us to pursue under the late act of the government of the United States relating to our lands. Brothers, we are in trouble; we have been told that the President has ratified a treaty, by which these lands are sold from our possession. We look to you and solicit your advice and your sympathy under the accumulating difficulties that now surround us. We feel more than ever, our need of the help of the great and good Spirit, to guide us aright. May his council ever preserve and direct us all in true wisdom.

"'It is known to you, brothers, that at different times our people have been induced to cede, by stipulated treaties, to the government of the United States, various tracts of our territory, until it is so reduced that it barely affords us a home. We had hoped by these liberal concessions to secure the quiet and unmolested possession of this small residue, but we have abundant reason to fear that we have been mistaken. The agent and surveyor of a company of land speculators, known as the Ogden Company, have been on here to lay out our land into lots, to be sold from us to the whites. We have protested against it, and have forbidden their proceeding.

"'Brothers, what we want, is that you should intercede with the United States government on our behalf. We do not want to leave our lands. We are willing that the emigrating party should sell out their rights, but we are not willing that they should sell ours.

"'Brothers, we want the President of the United States to know that we are for peace; that we only ask the possession of our just rights. We have kept in good faith all our agreements with the government. In our innocence of any violation we ask its protection. In our weakness we look to it for justice and mercy. We desire to live upon our lands in peace and harmony. We love Tonawanda. It is the residue left us of the land of our forefathers. We have no wish to leave it. Here are our cultivated fields, our houses, our wives and children, and our firesides—and here we wish to lay our bones in peace.

"'Brothers, in conclusion, we desire to express our sincere thanks to you for your friendly assistance in times past, and at the same time earnestly solicit your further attention and advice. Brothers, may the Great Spirit befriend you all—farewell.'

"Desirous of rendering such aid as might be in our power, a correspondence has been held with some members of Congress, on the subject of the treaty, and other matters connected with it; and recently, two of our number visited Washington, and were assured by the present Secretary of War, under whose immediate charge the Indian affairs are placed, that it was his determination, and that of the other officers of the government, to give to the treaty, and the circumstances attending its procurement, a thorough examination; and to adopt such a course respecting it, as justice and humanity to the Indians would dictate.

"The friends who have for several years resided at Tunesassah still continue to occupy the farm, and have charge of the saw and grist mills and other improvements. The farm, during the past year, has yielded about thirty-five tons of hay, two hundred bushels of potatoes, one hundred bushels of oats, and one hundred bushels of apples. Notwithstanding the unsettlement produced by the treaty during the past season, the Indians have raised an adequate supply of provisions to keep them comfortably during the year; and they manifest an increased desire to avoid the use of ardent spirits, and to have their children educated. In their letter of the Twelfth Month last, the chiefs say, 'We are more engaged to have our children educated than we have heretofore been. There are at this time three schools in operation on this reservation, for the instruction of our youth.'

"Our friend, Joseph Batty, in a letter dated 28th of Second Month last, says, 'The Indians have held several temperance councils this winter. The chiefs—with the exception of two, who were not present—have all signed a pledge to abstain from the use of all intoxicating liquors, and appear engaged to bring about a reform among their people; but the influence of the whites among them is prejudicial to their improvement in this and other respects.'

"By direction of the Committee,

"THOMAS WISTAR, Clerk.

"Philadelphia, 4th Month 15th, 1841."

APPENDIX D. p. 44.

ELISHA TYSON.

The following particulars of this memorable person are chiefly taken from a work, now very scarce, entitled "The Life of Elisha Tyson, the Philanthropist, by a Citizen of Baltimore."

"The eldest known ancestor of Mr. Tyson was a German Quaker, converted to the faith of Fox by the preaching of William Penn. Persecuted by the government of his native country for his religion, he gathered up his all and followed Penn to England; with whom, and at whose request, he afterwards embarked for America, and was among the first settlers of Pennsylvania. He established himself within what are now called the environs of Philadelphia, married the daughter of an English settler, and became the happy father of sons and daughters. From these, many descendants have been derived.

"Elisha Tyson was one of the great grandsons in direct descent of the German Quaker, and was born on the spot which he had chosen for his residence. The religion and virtues of this ancestor were instilled into the minds of his children and children's children, to the third and fourth generation—not by transmission of blood, but by the force of a guarded and a Christian education. In the subject of this memoir, they blazed forth with superior lustre. From his infancy he was conspicuous in his neighborhood for that benevolence of heart and intrepidity of soul, which so highly distinguished him in after life."

In his early manhood he removed to Baltimore, in the slave State of Maryland. Here, from his first residence, he took an active part in various benevolent and public spirited enterprises, although he had to struggle with early difficulties, having no resources for his support but honesty, industry, and perseverance. The cause of the oppressed slaves very soon engaged his attention, and his unwearied exertions in their behalf ceased not till the close of a long and energetic life. In the following quotation, describing the American slave trade, although the past tense is employed by his biographer, yet if Louisiana be substituted for Georgia, the whole representation is true of the present time. That dreadful traffic has increased many fold since the date here alluded to, at which E. Tyson's career of benevolence commenced.

"Even the most creditable merchants felt no compunction in speculating in the flesh and blood of their own species. These articles of merchandize were as common as wheat and tobacco, and ranked with these as a staple of Maryland. This state of things was naturally productive of scenes of cruelty. Georgia was then the great receptacle of that portion of these unfortunate beings, who were exported beyond the limits of their native soil; and the worst name given to Tartarus itself could not be more appalling to their imaginations than the name of that sister State. And when we consider the dreadful consequences suffered by the victims of this traffic; a separation like that of death between the nearest and dearest relatives; a banishment for ever from the land of their nativity and the scenes of their youth; the painful inflictions by the hands of slave drivers, to whom cruelty was rendered delightful by its frequent exercise; with many other sufferings too numerous to mention, we cannot wonder at this horror on the part of these unfortunate beings, and that it should cause them to use all the means in their power to avoid so terrible a destiny. The slave-trader, aware of all this, and fearful lest his victims might seek safety by flight, became increasingly careful of his property. With these men, and upon such subjects, care is cruelty; and thus the apparent necessity of the case came in aid of the favorite disposition of their minds. They charged their victims with being the authors of that cruelty, which had its true origin in their own remorseless hearts. Their plea for additional rigor, being plausibly urged, was favorably received by a community darkened by prejudice. Few regarded with pity, and most with stoical indifference, this barbarous correction for crimes anticipated, and rigorous penance for offences existing only in the diabolical fancies of their tormentors. The truth is, it was the love these poor wretches bore their wives, children, and native soil, for which they were punished. They were commonly bound two and two by chains, riveted to iron collars fastened around their necks, more and more closely, as their drivers had more and more reason to suspect a desire to escape. If they were conveyed in wagons, as they sometimes were, additional chains were so fixed, as to connect the right ancle of one with the left ancle of another, so that they were fastened foot to foot, and neck to neck. If a disposition to complain, or to grieve, was manifested by any of them, the mouths of such were instantly stopped with a gag. If, notwithstanding this, the overflowings of sorrow found a passage through other channels, they were checked by the 'scourge inexorable;'—the cruel monsters thus endeavoring to lessen the appearance of pain, by increasing its reality. These were scenes of ordinary occurrence; troops of these poor slaves were continually seen fettered as before described, marching two and two, with commanders before and behind, swords by their sides, and pistols in their belts—the triumphant victors over unarmed women and children. The sufferings of their victims, were, if possible, increased, when they were compelled to stop for the night. They were crowded in cellars, and loaded with an additional number of fetters. On those routes usually taken by them to the South, stated taverns were selected as their resting places for the night. In these, dungeons under ground were specially contrived for their reception. Iron staples, with rings in them, were fixed at proper places in the walls; to these, chains were welded; and to these chains the fetters of the prisoners were locked, as the means of certain safety. It was usual every day for these slave-drivers to keep a strict record of the imagined offences of their slaves; which, if not to their satisfaction expiated by suffering during the day, remained upon the register until its close; when, in the midst of midnight dungeon horrors, goaded with a weight of fetters, in addition to those which had galled them during their weary march, these reputed sins were atoned by their blood, which was made to trickle down 'the scourge with triple thongs.'"

Such was the evil with which Elisha Tyson, when "young, solitary, and friendless," undertook to grapple; the means he chiefly employed, were such as tended to purify and enlighten public opinion.

"He had two principal modes of operating upon the public mind; by conversation in public and private places, and by the press. Through the means of the first, he worked upon the feelings and sentiments of the higher and more influential classes; by means of the latter, he influenced in a great degree, the mass of the community. In private conversation, his arguments were so cogent, his appeals so energetic, and his manner so sincere and disinterested, that few could avoid conviction. It is true, indeed, as it regards the press, that he did not publish very much of his own composing; but he procured the publication of a vast deal of his own dictating. By his arguments and entreaties, he aroused the zeal of many individuals, each of whom enlisted himself as a kind of voluntary amanuensis, who wrote and published his dictations. Many important essays have in this way been communicated to the public."

But he undertook also, services requiring a yet sterner resolution, and more heroic perseverance, services which demanded that he himself should be in bondage neither to riches, honor, nor reputation, since his exertions endangered all his personal interests in such a community as that by which he was surrounded.

"Of those held in servitude, two classes of beings felt in a peculiar manner the kindness and sympathy of Mr. Tyson—those entitled to their freedom, and illegally held in slavery—and those, who, though not illegally kept in bondage, yet were treated with inhumanity by their masters.

"Where he had reason to believe that a person claimed as a slave was entitled to his freedom, he would, in the first place, in order to avoid litigation, lay before the reputed owner, the grounds of his belief. If these were disregarded, he then proceeded to employ counsel, by whom a petition for freedom was filed in the proper court, and the case prosecuted to a final determination. What excited most astonishment in these trials, was the extraordinary success which attended him. Very few were the cases in which he was defeated; and his failure even in these, was more generally owing to the want of testimony, than to the want of justice on his side. To enumerate his successes, would be as impossible, on account of their vast number, as it would be tedious on account of their similarity to each other. Whole families were often liberated by a single verdict, the fate of one relative deciding the fate of many. And often ancestors, after passing a long life in illegal slavery, sprung at last, like the chrysalis in autumn, into new existence, beneath the genial rays of the sun of liberty, which shed at the same time its benign influence upon their children, and children's children.

"The titles of the individuals, thus liberated, to their freedom, were variously derived. Sometimes from deeds of manumission, long suppressed, and at last brought to light, by the searching scrutiny of Tyson—sometimes from the genealogy of the petitioner, traced by him to some Indian or white maternal ancestor—sometimes from the right to freedom, claimed by birth, but attempted to be destroyed by the rapacity of some vile kidnapper, and sometimes from the violation of those of our laws which manumitted slaves imported from foreign parts.

"The labors of Mr. Tyson, were not confined to a single district—they extended over the whole of Maryland. There is not a county in it, which has not felt his influence, or a court of justice, whose records do not bear proud testimonials of his triumphs over tyranny. Throwing out of calculation the many liberations indirectly resulting from his efforts, we speak more than barely within bounds, when we say, that he has been the means, under Providence, of rescuing at least two thousand human beings from the galling yoke of a slavery, which, but for him, would have been perpetual.

"And here let me join my readers in expressions of wonder and astonishment at this extraordinary display of human benevolence, in the person of a single individual—unsupported by power, wealth, or title, beneath the frowns of society, and against a torrent of prejudice."

In the year 1789 an "Abolition Society," (see antecedent pages 23 and 24,) was formed in Baltimore, of which Elisha Tyson was a member until its dissolution, seven years afterwards.

"From that time, Mr. Tyson supported alone the cause of emancipation in Maryland. Alone, I mean, as the sole director and prime mover of the machinery by which that cause was maintained. Assisted, he was, no doubt, from time to time; but that assistance was procured through his influence, or rendered effectual under his inspection and advice.[A]

A: "One of the most active assistants was his brother Jesse, much younger than Elisha. He followed him to this State a few years after the arrival of the latter, was an active member of the Abolition Society, and continued, to the day of his death, to co-operate with Elisha."

"The slave traffic gave rise to an evil still greater—I mean the crime of kidnapping. If the horrors arising from the first were so great as I have described them, how shall I depict those of the other! Slaves only were the victims of the slave trade. In passing from hand to hand, they merely exchanged one condition of slavery for another. And though on such occasions they fell from a less degree of misery into a greater, they could not number among their privations any thing so bitter as the loss of liberty. It was this that made the difference between them and the victims of the kidnapper; not that they laid their hands exclusively upon the freeman, for sometimes their rapacity seized upon a slave. But this was very seldom, for the vigilance of slave owners was always alive to detect, and their vengeance to punish such daring felony. In almost all cases of man stealing, the stolen beings were of those who had tasted the sweets of liberty. To the kidnapper, who made these his prey, there were great facilities for escaping with impunity; not only because, in the depth and darkness of a dungeon, his limbs loaded with fetters, and utterance choked with a gag, his suffering could not be made visible or audible, but also because the deadness of sensibility on this subject, which still pervaded the public, though in a less degree than formerly, seemed to have unnerved every eye and palsied every ear. Sights of misery passed darkly before the one and sounds of wo fell lifeless on the other.

"On one occasion Mr. Tyson received intelligence that three colored persons, supposed to have been kidnapped, had been seen under suspicious circumstances, late in the evening, with a notorious slave-trader, in a carriage, which was then moving rapidly towards a quarter of the precincts of Baltimore in which there was a den of man-hunters. It was late in the day when he received the information, which was immediately communicated to the proper authorities. As the testimony offered to these was not, in their opinion, sufficiently strong to induce them to act instantaneously, Mr. Tyson was obliged to seek for aid in other quarters. He accordingly requested certain individuals, who had sometimes lent him their assistance, to accompany him to the scene of suspicion, in order to obtain, if possible, additional proof. One after another made excuse, (some telling him that the evidence was too weak to justify any effort, and others saying that it would be better to postpone the business for the next morning,) until Mr. Tyson saw himself without the hope of foreign assistance. But he did not yield or despair—one hope yet remained, and that rested on himself. Alone he determined to search out the den of thieves, to see and judge for himself. If there was no foundation for his suspicions, to dismiss them; if they were true, to call in the aid of the civil power, for the punishment of guilt and the rescue of innocence.

"So much time had been spent in receiving the excuses of his friends, that it was late at night when he set out, on foot and without a single weapon of defence. In the midst of silence and darkness, he marched along until he arrived at the place of destination. It was situated in the very skirts of the city—a public tavern in appearance, but almost exclusively appropriated to a band of slave-traders. Here they conveyed their prey, whether stolen or purchased; here they held their midnight orgies, and revelled in the midst of misery. The keeper of this place was himself one of the party, and therefore not very scrupulous about the sort of victims his companions chose to place beneath his care. Mr. Tyson ascended the door-sill, and, for a moment, listened, if perchance he might hear the sounds of wo. Suddenly a loud laugh broke upon his ears, which was soon lost in a chorus of laughter. Indignant at the sound, he reached forth his hand and rapped with his whole might. No answer was received. He rapped again—all was silence. He then applied himself to the fastening of the door, and finding it unlocked, opened it and entered. Suddenly four men made their appearance. They had been carousing around a table which stood in the centre of a room, and when a little alarmed by the rapping at the door, they had gone in different directions to seize their weapons. Mr. Tyson immediately recognised in the countenance of one of these, who appeared to be their leader, the slave-trader whose conduct had given rise to the suspicions that had brought him thither. Nor was it many moments before the person and character of Mr. Tyson became known.

"'I understand,' said he, 'that there are persons confined in this place entitled to their freedom?'

"'You have been wrongly informed,' said the leader of the quartette; 'and, besides, what business is it of yours?'

"'Whether I am wrongly informed,' said Mr. Tyson, calmly, 'can be soon made to appear; and I hold it my business, as it is the business of every good man in the community, to see that all doubts of this kind are settled!'

"'You shall advance no further,' rejoined the leader, swearing a tremendous oath, and putting himself in a menacing attitude.

"With the rapidity of lightning, and with a strength that seemed to have been lent him for the occasion, Mr. Tyson broke through the arms of his opponent. As he had been repeatedly at this house on similar errands, he knew the course he should steer, and made directly for the door of the dungeon. There he met another of the band, with a candle in one hand, and in the other, a pistol, which, having cocked, he presented full against the breast of Mr. Tyson, swearing that he would shoot him if he advanced a step further.

"'Shoot if thee dare,' said Mr. Tyson, in a voice of thunder, 'but thee dare not, coward as thou art, for well does thee know, that the gallows would be thy portion.'

"Whether it was the voice and countenance of Mr. Tyson, or the terror of the word gallows, that affected the miscreant, his arm suddenly fell, and he stood as if struck dumb with amazement. Mr. Tyson taking advantage of the moment, in the twinkling of an eye, snatched the candle from the hand of the kidnapper, entered the dungeon door, which was providentially unlocked, and descended into the vault below.

"There he beheld a dismal sight; six poor creatures chained to each other by links connected with the prison wall! The prisoners shrunk within themselves at the sight of a man, and one of them uttered a shriek of terror, mistaking the character of their visitor. He told them that he was their friend; and his name was Elisha Tyson. That name was enough for them, for their whole race had been long taught to utter it. He inquired, 'if any of them were entitled to their freedom?' 'Yes,' said one, 'these two boys say that they and their, mother here are free, but she can't speak to you, for she is gagged.' Mr. Tyson approached this woman, and found that she was really deprived of her utterance. He instantly cut away the band that held in the gag, and thus gave speech to the dumb. She told her tale; 'she was manumitted by a gentleman on the eastern shore of Maryland; her sons were born after her emancipation, and of course free. She referred to persons and papers. She had come over the Chesapeake in a packet, for the purpose of getting employment; and was, with her children, decoyed away immediately on her arrival, by a person who brought her to that house. Mr. Tyson told her to be of good comfort, for he would immediately provide the means of her rescue. He then left the dungeon and ascended the stair way, when he reached the scene of his preceding contest; he, looked around, but saw no one save the keeper of the tavern. Fearing that the others had escaped, or were about to escape, he hastened out of the house, and proceeded with rapid strides in pursuit of a constable. He soon found one and entreated his assistance. But the officer refused, unless Mr. Tyson would give him a bond of indemnity against all loss which he might suffer by his interference. Mr. Tyson complied without hesitation. The officer, after summoning assistance, proceeded with Mr. Tyson to the scene of cruelty. There meeting with the tavern keeper, they compelled him to unlock the fetters of the three individuals claiming their freedom. They then searched the house for the supposed kidnappers, and found two of them; in, bed, whom, together with the women, and children, they conveyed that night to the jail of Baltimore county, to await the decision of a court of justice. The final consequence was, the mother and children were adjudged free. One of the two slave-traders, taken as afore-mentioned in custody, was found guilty of having kidnapped them, and was sentenced to the Maryland penitentiary, for a term of years.

"On another occasion, Mr. Tyson having received satisfactory evidence that a colored person, on board a vessel about to sail for New Orleans, in Louisiana, was entitled to his freedom, hastened to his assistance. On reaching the wharf, where the vessel had lain, he learned that she had cleared out the day before, and was then lying at anchor, a mile down the river. He immediately procured two officers of the peace, with whom he proceeded in a batteau, with a full determination to board the suspected ship.

"When he arrived alongside, he hailed the captain and asked him 'whether such a person, (naming him,) having on board negroes destined for the New Orleans market, was not among the number of passengers.' Before the captain had time to reply, the passenger alluded to, who had overheard the question, stepped to the side of the vessel, and recognising Mr. Tyson, asked what business he had with him. 'I understand,' said Mr. Tyson, 'that a colored person,' describing him, 'now in thy possession, is entitled to his freedom.' 'He is my slave,' said the trader; 'I have purchased him by a fair title, and no man shall interfere between him and me.'

"'If these documents speak the truth,' said Mr. Tyson, holding certain papers in his hand, 'however fairly you have purchased him he is not your slave.' He then proceeded to read the documents. At the same time a light breeze springing up, the captain ordered all hands to hoist sail and be off. Mr. Tyson seeing that there was not a minute to be lost, requested the constables to go on board with him for the purpose of rescuing the free man who had been deprived of his rights. The trader immediately drew a dagger from his belt, (for this sort of men went always armed,) and swore that 'the first man that dared set his foot upon the deck of that ship was a dead man.' 'Then I will be that man,' said Mr. Tyson, with a firm voice and intrepid countenance, and sprang upon the deck. The trader stepped back aghast. The officers followed, and descended the hold of the ship. There they soon saw the object of their search. Without any resistance being made on the part of a single person on board, they led their rescued prisoner along and safely lodged him in the boat below. Then Mr. Tyson, addressing the trader, said, 'If you have any lawful claim to this man, come along and try your title; if you cannot come, name your agent, and I will see that justice is done to all parties.' The trader, who seemed dumb with confusion, made no answer; and Mr. Tyson requested his boatmen to row off. Ere they had proceeded half their distance from the ship, her sails were spread and she began to ride down the stream. Had Mr. Tyson's visit been delayed half an hour longer, his benevolent exertions would have been in vain.

"No one appearing to dispute the right of the colored man to freedom, his freedom papers were given him and he was set at liberty.

"The whole life of Mr. Tyson was diversified by acts such as we have just described. Those I have given to the reader may be considered as specimens merely, a few examples out of a vast many, which, if they were all repeated, would satiate by their number and tire by their uniformity.

"The joy manifested by the poor creatures whom he thus rescued from misery, on their deliverance, may be imagined, but cannot well be described. Sometimes it broke forth in loud and wild demonstrations; sometimes it was deep and inexpressible, or expressed only by mingled tears of gratitude and ecstacy, rolling silently but profusely down their wo-worn cheeks.

"Mr. Tyson, it is remarkable, would always turn his eyes from these manifestations. He would listen to no declarations of thanks. When these were strongly pressed upon him, he would usually exclaim, 'Well, that will do now; that is enough for this time.' And once when one of these creatures, fearful that Mr. Tyson would not consider him sufficiently grateful, cried out, 'Indeed, master, I am very thankful, I would die to serve you,' Mr. Tyson exclaimed, 'Why, man, I have only done my duty; I don't want thy thanks;' and turned abruptly away.

"Equalled only by the delight of the rescued victims, was the chagrin and vexation of the slave-traders, when they saw their prey torn from their grasp. They cursed the law; they cursed its ministers; but above all, they invoked imprecations upon the head of Tyson.

"They swore that they would murder him, that they would fire his dwelling over his head, that they would do a thousand things, all full of vengeance. None of these threats were ever put into execution; for though a plot was once laid to take away his life, fear dispersed the actors long before the day of performance. Thus does it always happen that the wickedest of men are also the meanest, and therefore the most dastardly. And thus did the cowardice of Mr. Tyson's enemies shield him from the effects of their enmity. Nor did he profit less by that individual fear of him which these slave-traders were made to feel. They feared him because they deprecated his hostility. In order, if possible, to lessen this hostility, they frequently became informers on others engaged in the same traffic. This they were further inclined to do, in consequence of the jealousy that subsisted between them—a jealousy very natural to competitors in the same line of business. It was always a time of exultation with them when one of their number found his way into the penitentiary.

"It sometimes happened that Mr. Tyson extracted from the mouths of these monsters, evidence which afterwards went to criminate those who had uttered it. It was usual with him when he could not obtain testimony against a suspected person, to send for such person and interrogate him. No one refused his summons—fear forbade the refusal; and after they had come, the very fear which brought them there sacrificed them to injured humanity. Sometimes those who came voluntarily for the purpose of criminating others, involved themselves in toils of their own weaving; where they were no sooner seen, by the penetrating eye of Tyson, than he reached forth his hands and secured his astonished prisoner, before he had a suspicion of his danger.

"Mr. Tyson's knowledge of the sort of people with whom he had principally to deal was perfect. His quickness of perception and self-command were also remarkable. These qualifications gave him an extraordinary power in the examinations just alluded to.

"One evening the servant announced a stranger at the door, who wished to see Mr. Tyson privately. Mr. Tyson requested that he might be asked into the room where we were then sitting, and if further privacy were necessary he should have it.

"When the door opened and the stranger appeared, he was no other than the slave-trader we have just alluded to.

"'Your humble servant,' said the man, casting off his hat and bowing profoundly; 'I hope you are well, sir; I have a few words for your private ear.'

"'Every one present may be safely trusted,' said Mr. Tyson; 'but sit down.'

"The man seated himself. 'Well,' said Mr. Tyson, 'what is there new in thy way of business; I suppose it continues as usual to be a good business?'

"'Ah! sir,' said the man, 'I believe it to be a bad business in more ways than one. I am resolved to quit it.'

"'Not while thee can get two hundred dollars profit per man,' said Mr. Tyson.

"'Notwithstanding that,' said the trader, 'it's a bad business; it's a hard business; I must quit it, and that very soon.'

"'Hast thou heard of the old saying,' said Mr. Tyson, 'Hell is paved with good intentions? I fear,' said he, 'when thee goes there thee will find thine among the number.'

"'I know,' said the trader, 'you think me very bad; but when you hear what I have to communicate, perhaps your opinion will alter a little.'

"'I wish it may; but,' said Mr. Tyson, 'thy progress down hill has been so rapid, and thou hast got so far, that thee will find it rather hard to turn about and ascend.'

"These doubtings, attended with a shrewd, suspicious, yet satirical look, had the effect intended; for the man became doubly anxious to do what he had come to do, and what he thought would be esteemed a great favor by Mr. Tyson. Accordingly, after a word or two of preface, he stated that he 'had reason to believe that ----', naming a certain trader, 'had kidnapped two free blacks.'

"'Thee is certainly mistaken,' said Mr. Tyson, affecting great surprise; 'it is hardly possible that so worthy a man could have been guilty of so great a crime.'

"This apparent doubt on the part of Mr. Tyson, made the man more anxious to bring out all his testimony.

"'But who told thee this piece of news?' said Mr. Tyson. There was a breach at once into the man's order and arrangement and he hesitated for a reply. 'Mr. ----, Mr. ----, Mr. ----, what do ye call him, spoke to me about it.' 'Who?' said Mr. Tyson. 'Mr. ----,' said the man; mentioning the name of a veteran dealer in human flesh.

"'Is he engaged in the traffic now?' asked Mr. Tyson.

"'Yes, sir; very deep in it.'

"'By himself, or in partnership?' asked Mr. Tyson carelessly.

"'Why, I believe he is in partnership with some body.'

"'Is he not in partnership,' said Mr. Tyson, 'with ----?' naming the person whom the man was anxious to inculpate.

"'I believe he was, but I don't know that he is now.'

"'Thee don't know of their having dissolved?' asked Mr. Tyson at the same time, as if thoughtlessly lighting his pipe.

"'No, I do not. But as I was going to say,' said the trader—

"'Ah, true,' said Mr. Tyson, 'we must not forget. Thee was talking about a case of kidnapping; well?'

"'Last night,' said the trader, 'a hack drove up to the tavern where I lodge. The hackman inquired the way to ----'s tavern, which is the place of rendezvous for ---- and his gang;' naming the person whose guilt seemed to be the principal object of inquiry. 'I looked into the carriage, and saw two boys.'

"'Did thee speak to them?'

"'No, they were gagged, and that made me think they were kidnapped.'

"'Was any body with them?'

"'Nobody but the driver, and he was black.'

"'Did thee direct him as he requested?' asked Mr. Tyson.

"'Yes.'

"'And they arrived accordingly?'

"'Yes.'

"'Did thee follow them?'

"'No sir, not immediately—but I went this morning, and inquired whether a hack with two boys and a black driver, had not arrived late last night, and they said there had.'

"'What o'clock last night was it when thee saw the carriage?'

"'About ten, sir.'

"'Was the hack close, or were the curtains down?'

"'The curtains were down, and that increased my suspicion.'

"Mr. Tyson had now heard enough to convince him that if there was any kidnapping in this case, the trader who stood before him had a much nearer connection with it than that of a mere spectator.

"He had said in the first place that he obtained his knowledge from a trader who had been partner with the party implicated. He then stated that he derived it from seeing the kidnapped persons in a hack. And though it was ten o'clock at night, (at a time, too, as Mr. Tyson knew, when there was no moon,) yet he could not only see that these two persons were in the hack, but that they were gagged. He could not have done this by the light of a candle or the moon, because 'the hack was tight, and the curtains were down.'

"Fearing lest the suspicions of the trader might be excited as to the sentiments of Mr. Tyson towards him, an end was put to the part of the dialogue which related to the kidnapping, by saying, 'Well, I am much obliged to thee for thy information; we'll see this ----, and settle the matter with him;' and then turned the tide of conversation into a different direction.

"The same day Mr. Tyson sent for the person who was first mentioned as the person communicating the knowledge of the transaction, and asked him as to the fact of such communication. It was positively denied. He had 'not seen the informer for six weeks, except the last evening, when he brought a hack load of negroes to the tavern where he and his partner were lodgers.'

"'Were two boys among the number?'

"'Yes.'

"'Were they gagged?'

"'Yes.'

"The moment this man left his house, Mr. Tyson went in search of bailiffs and civil process. With these he proceeded to the place where the two boys were confined, and had them and all three of the traders taken into custody.

"It turned out afterwards, in the further prosecution of this investigation, (by what testimony we do not distinctly recollect,) that the informer who first came to Mr. Tyson had himself kidnapped the two boys. He sold them to the person upon whom he had endeavored, in the manner we have detailed, to affix the whole crime; who, refusing afterward to pay their price, and yet determined to retain them, exasperated the seller to such a degree that he resolved to sacrifice him; in attempting which he sacrificed himself, for he was afterward convicted and sentenced to the penitentiary.

"During the progress of any investigation originated by Mr. Tyson in behalf of individual freedom, his anxiety about the final issue, though concealed from the world, burned with intensity. His days were restless, his nights were sleepless, and himself, except when in company, which he avoided at those times, lost in the abstractions of hope or of despondency.

"When he succeeded, his joy was strong, but invisible or inaudible, save to the Father of all mercies. To him he never failed 'to pour out his soul' in pious thanksgivings for that he made him a humble instrument in the restoration of a fellow being to light and liberty.

"When he failed, which was seldom, after he had seriously undertaken a case, his sorrow was equally great, and as inscrutable to human observation, excepting that of the unfortunate objects of his care, who saw him mingling tears of sympathy with theirs of suffering.

"Though Mr. Tyson seldom failed in those cases which he had commenced in legal form, yet very many persons were turned hopelessly away whose cases were too groundless for adjudication; and often those who knew they had no cause for hope,—condemned to be torn from their connections and sold, as if to death, never to be heard of more,—would call merely to obtain his sympathies, as if the universe had no other friend for them.

"A man who lived with his master, in Anne Arundel county, came late one evening to Mr. Tyson, and begged that he would listen to his case. His master had promised him his freedom, provided he would raise and pay him the sum of five hundred dollars in six years; and he had earned half of the money, which he had given his master. The six years were not expired, yet he was about to be sold to Georgia. Mr. Tyson asked if 'there was any receipt for the money.' 'No.' 'Was there any witness who could prove its payment?' 'Nobody but his master's wife.' 'Then,' said Mr. Tyson, 'the law is against thee, and thou must submit. I can do nothing for thee.' Never, said Mr. Tyson, when relating this story, shall I forget the desperate resolution which showed itself in the countenance and manner of this man when he said, with clenched fist, his eyes raised to Heaven, his whole frame bursting with the purpose of his soul, while a smile of triumph played around his lips, 'I will die before the Georgia man shall have me.' And then suddenly melting into a flood of tears, he said, 'I cannot live away from my wife and children.' After this poor fellow had left me, said Mr. Tyson, I said to a person present, 'That is no common man; he will do what he has resolved.'

"A short time afterwards, the remains of a colored person who had been drowned in the basin at Baltimore were discovered. The fact coming to the knowledge of Mr. Tyson, he went to see the body, and recognized in its features and from its dress, the remains of the unfortunate man who, a short time before, had breathed the dreadful resolution in his presence."

Such are a few of the memorials which this friend of the human race has left behind him. He was not less persevering, and scarcely less successful in his endeavors to obtain the mitigation of the slave laws in Maryland. Some of the most repulsive of these were repealed or altered, particularly those restricting manumissions. Thus the condition and the prospects of the whole body of slaves was improved, in addition to more than two thousand delivered by his immediate instrumentality from illegal bondage. Hundreds of free and happy families have cause at this day to bless the memory of "Father Tyson."

He also deeply interested himself on behalf of the Indian tribes; and once in company with another individual, as a deputation from the Society of Friends in Baltimore, undertook a dangerous journey to visit several tribes 1000 miles distant, to the north-west of the Ohio. The main object of the mission was to induce the Indians to refrain from the use of ardent spirits—of whose destructive effects the chiefs were themselves fully sensible. The following affecting address was made to an assembly of "Friends" in Baltimore, by Little Turtle, a chief famous for courage, sagacity and eloquence:

"Brothers and Friends:—When our forefathers first met on this great Island, your red brethren were very numerous! But since the introduction among us of what you call spirituous liquors, and what we think may justly be called poison, our numbers are greatly diminished. It has destroyed a great part of your red brethren.

"My Brothers and Friends:—We plainly perceive, that you see the very evil which destroyed your red brethren; it is not an evil of our own making; we have not placed it among ourselves; it is an evil placed among us by the white people; we look to them to remove it out of our country. We tell them, 'Brethren, bring us useful things; bring goods that will clothe us, our women and our children; and not this evil liquor, that destroys our reason, that destroys our health, and destroys our lives.' But all we can say on this subject is of no service, nor gives relief to your red brethren.

"My Brother and Friends:—I rejoice to find that you agree in opinion with us, and express an anxiety to be, if possible, of service to us, in removing this great evil out of our country; an evil which has had so much room in it; and has destroyed so many of our lives, that it causes our young men to say, 'we had better be at war with the white people.' This liquor, which they introduce into our country, is more to be feared than the gun and the tomahawk. There are more of us dead, since the treaty of Greenville, than we lost by the six years war before. It is all owing to the introduction of this liquor amongst us.

"Brothers:—When our young men have been out hunting, and are returning home, loaded with skins and furs, on their way if it happens that they come along where some of this whiskey is deposited, the white man who sells it, tells them to take a little drink; some of them will say 'no, I do not want it;' they go on till they come to another house, where they find more of the same kind of drink; it is there offered again; they refuse; and again the third time. But finally, the fourth or fifth time, one accepts of it and takes a drink; and getting one, he wants another; and then a third, and a fourth, till his senses have left him. After his reason comes back to him again, when he gets up and finds where he is, he asks for his peltry. The answer is, 'You have drank them,' 'Where is my gun?' 'It is gone?' 'Where is my blanket?' 'It is gone.' 'Where is my shirt?' 'You have sold it for whiskey!!' Now, Brothers, figure to yourselves, the condition of this man. He has a family at home; a wife and children, who stand in need of the profits of his hunting. What must be their wants, when he himself is even without a shirt?"

The journey of Elisha Tyson and his companion, James Gillingham, occurred a few years subsequent to the interview at which the preceding speech was made. They met a council of the Indians at Fort Wayne, whom Elisha Tyson addressed to the following effect:

"He painted in glowing colors the dreadful effects of intemperance—both upon civilized and savage life—told them that they must resolve to abstain entirely from it. If they admitted it at all among them, it would soon conquer them, and reduce them to a condition worse than that of the brute creation. That not until they abandoned altogether the use of ardent spirits would they be fit subjects for civilization. If they were ready to do this he would then unfold to them the blessings of civilization—the superiority of such a condition over the one in which they then subsisted. He traced their history from the earliest period to the present time—shewed them how, as the white population had expanded itself, they had retreated into the western wilderness—that if they did not remain, but continued to retreat, in a few years they would have no territory upon this continent. In order, therefore, to their permanent establishment, he recommended to them the practice of agriculture, as a substitute for hunting. He advised them to mark out their lands, and ask advice of the agents established by the Society of Friends among them, with respect to their cultivation. They stood ready, not only with their advice, but with their assistance; they were furnished for their use with all the necessary implements of husbandry, with beasts of the plough also, and beasts of burden.

"They had come a great distance, endured much privation and fatigue in order to see them, and must endure a great deal more before they could again behold their wives and their children. But they could bear it all with patience, nay with joy, if they could only have the satisfaction of seeing them adopt the disinterested advice which he had thus given them."

The following is one of the speeches made in reply, by White Loon, an influential chief:

"Brothers:—Ever since your great father Onas, (William Penn,) came upon this great island, the Quakers have been the friends of red men. They have proved themselves worthy of being the descendants of their great father. And now, when all the whites have forgotten that they owe any thing to us, the Quakers of Baltimore, though so far distant from us, have remembered the distressed condition of their red brethren, and interceded with the Great Spirit in our behalf.

"Brothers:—You have travelled very far to see us—you have climbed over mountains—you have swam over deep and rapid torrents—you have endured cold, and hunger, and fatigue, in order that you might have an opportunity of seeing your red brethren. For this, so long as life exists within us, we shall be very grateful.

"Brothers:—That wide region of country over which you have passed, was once filled with red men. Then was there a plenty of deer and buffalo, and all kinds of game. But the white people came from beyond the great water; they landed in multitudes on our shores; they cut down our forests; they drove our warriors before them, and frightened the wild herds, so that they sought security in the deep shades of the west.

"Brothers:—These white men were not your grandfathers; for, as I said before, the sons of Onas were always the friends of red men.

"Brothers:—The whites are still advancing upon us. They have reached our territory, and have built their wigwams within our very hunting grounds. Our game is vanishing away.

"Brothers:—Formerly our hunters pursued the wild deer, and the buffalo, and the bear; and when they killed them they ate their flesh for food, and used their skins as covering for themselves, their old men, their women, and their children. But now, they kill them that they may have plenty of skins and furs to sell to the white men. The consequence of this is, the game is destroyed wantonly, and faster than our necessities require.

"Brothers:—We would not mind all this, provided these skins and furs were exchanged for useful articles—for implements of husbandry, or clothes for our old men, our women, and our children. But they are too often bartered away for whiskey, that vile poison, which has sunk even Wapakee into the dust.

"Brothers:—We shall soon be under the necessity either of leaving our hunting grounds or of converting them into pastures and fields of corn. Under the kind assistance of our brothers, the Quakers, we have already proceeded a great way. You have witnessed, as you have passed among us, the good effects of the kindness of our brothers. We are disposed to go on as we have begun, until our habits and manners, as well as the face of our country, shall be changed and look like those of the white people.

"Brothers:—Accept from us this belt of wampum and pipe of peace. And may the Great Sasteretsy, who conducted you here in safety, still go with you and restore you in peace and happiness to the arms of your women and children."

After this, with ceremonies such as those already described, but, if possible, accompanied with more solemnity, the chiefs dissolved the council.

It is a melancholy reflection, that soon such memorials as these will be the only remains of that noble but unfortunate race who once peopled the continent of North America. War has slain its thousands, but alcohol its tens of thousands; and the fortitude which could bear without shrinking the most cruel inflictions of torture, has proved powerless to resist the seductions of strong drink. It is to be feared a heavy retribution awaits the white man, the pitiless author of their extermination.

The biographer of E. Tyson has taken great pains to represent him as a friend to the Colonization Society, but in this respect I am informed, by one who well knew him, he has done him great injustice. It is confessed, indeed, that for a long period E. Tyson viewed this scheme with great jealousy. "When we saw," remarks this writer, "domestic tyrants, and men who had actually, in the southern slave-trade, speculated in the flesh and blood of their fellow creatures, united with their betters in a society, the professed object of which was the peopling of a continent with freemen by the depopulation of a continent of slaves, he argued, as he had a right to argue, mischief to the cause." No evidence is adduced to show that this same distrust of the Colonization Society was ever removed, beyond the fact that, having been the means of liberating eleven native Africans from a slave-ship, he cooperated with Gen. Harper, an influential colonizationist, in restoring them to their native country, which bordered upon the colony of Liberia. This was the last public act of his life.

"The great concern in which he had spent his life was the constant topic of his conversation; and he continued with his latest breath to enforce the claims of the unhappy sons of slavery upon the humanity of their brethren. It was natural that he should feel a strong anxiety about the fate of those who, through his exertions, had been restored to their friends in Africa. He was on the alert to hear intelligence of their fate—his spirit seemed to follow them across the mighty waters. On one occasion he was heard to say, 'If I could only hear of their safe arrival I should die content;' and on another, that he 'had prayed to the Father of Mercies that he would be pleased to spare his life until he could receive the pleasing intelligence.' His prayer was heard. The news reached his ears amid the last lingerings of life. He shed tears of joy on the occasion; and when he had sufficiently yielded to the first burst of feeling, exclaimed, like one satiated with earthly happiness, 'Now I am ready to die; my work is done.' His expressions were prophetic; for in the short space of forty-eight hours, on the 16th of February, 1824, at the age of 75 years, he breathed his soul into the hands of God Almighty."

The following are some notices of his personal appearance and mental characteristics:

"The person of Mr. Tyson was about six feet in height, though the habit of leaning forward as he walked, gave a less appearance to his stature. The rest of his frame was suited to his height.

"The features of his countenance were strong. His forehead was high; his nose large, and of the Roman order; his eyes were dark and piercing; his lips so singularly expressive, that even in their stillest mood they would almost seem to be uttering the purposes of his mind. Indeed his whole face was indicative, to a striking degree, of the passions and feelings of his soul.

"The mind of Mr. Tyson was strong, rather than brilliant. With scarcely any imagination, he possessed a judgment almost infallible in its decisions; great powers of reason, which were more conspicuous for the certainty of its conclusions than remarkable for displaying the train of inferences by which it arrived at them. He possessed wonderful acuteness of understanding, quickness of perception, and readiness of reply.

"For these qualities he was indebted more to nature than to art. He was not educated for the exalted station of a philanthropist, but for the business of the world; and yet he seemed fitted exactly for the part he acted. He possessed not the refinements of education; he had not learned to soar into the regions of fancy, his destiny was upon the earth; and he knew no flight but that which bears the soul to heaven."

APPENDIX E. p. 68.

THE "AMISTAD CAPTIVES."

The following statements are drawn from a "History of the Amistad Captives, &c., by John W. Barber, member of the Connecticut Historical Society;" from the authentic reports of the proceedings in the courts of law, and from a letter of my friend, Lewis Tappan, to the public papers.

"During the month of August, 1839, the public attention was somewhat excited by several reports stating that a vessel of suspicious and piratical character had been seen near the coast of the United States, in the vicinity of New York. This vessel was represented as a 'long, low, black schooner,' and manned by blacks. The United States steamer Fulton and several revenue cutters were despatched after her, and notice was given to the collectors at various sea ports."

This suspicious looking schooner proved to be the "Amistad," which was eventually captured off Culloden Point, by Lieut. Gedney, of the U.S. brig "Washington." At this time, however, the Africans, who were in possession of the vessel, were in communication with the shore, and peaceably trafficking with the inhabitants for a supply of water for their intended voyage to their own country. They had spontaneously submitted to the command of one of their number, Cinque, a man of extraordinary natural capacity. When they were taken, he was separated from his companions and conveyed on board the brig.

"Cinque having been put on board of the 'Washington,' displayed much uneasiness, and seemed so very anxious to get on board the schooner that his keepers allowed him to return. Once more on the deck of the 'Amistad,' the blacks clustered around him, laughing, screaming, and making other extravagant demonstrations of joy. When the noise had subsided, he made an address, which raised their excitement to such a pitch, that the officer in command had Cinque led away by force. He was returned to the 'Washington,' and was manacled to prevent his leaping overboard. On Wednesday, he signified by motions that if they would take him on board the schooner again, he would show them a handkerchief full of doubloons. He was accordingly sent on board. His fetters were taken off, and he once more went below, where he was received by the Africans in a still more wild and enthusiastic manner than he was the day previous. Instead of finding the doubloons, he again made an address to the blacks, by which they were very much excited. Dangerous consequences were apprehended. Cinque was seized, taken from the hold, and again fettered. While making his speech, his eye was often turned to the sailors in charge: the blacks yelled, leapt about, and seemed to be animated with the same spirit and determination of their leader. Cinque, when taken back to the 'Washington,' evinced little or no emotion, but kept his eye steadily fixed on the schooner."

An event so extraordinary and unprecedented as the capture of the "Amistad," excited the most lively interest among all classes. The Africans, forty-four in number, were brought to New Haven and secured in the county jail. A number of gentlemen formed themselves into a committee to watch over their interests, and immediately there was begun a long and complicated series of judicial proceedings, to determine how they should be disposed of. Ruiz and Montez, the two white men, late the prisoners, but claiming to be the owners of the Africans, caused them to be indicted for piracy and murder. This was almost immediately disposed of, on the ground that the charges, if true, were not cognizable in the American courts, the alleged offences having been perpetrated on board a Spanish vessel. The Africans therefore were in no immediate danger of capital punishment. Ruiz and Montez on their part seem to have met with sympathy and kindness, and to testify their gratitude caused the following to be inserted in the New York papers:

"A CARD.

"NEW LONDON, AUGUST 29, 1839.

"The subscribers, Don Jose Ruiz, and Don Pedro Montez, in gratitude for their most unhoped for and providential rescue from the hands of a ruthless gang of African bucaneers and an awful death, would take this means of expressing, in some slight degree, their thankfulness and obligation to Lieut. Com. T.R. Gedney, and the officers and crew of the U.S. surveying brig Washington, for their decision in seizing the Amistad, and their unremitting kindness and hospitality in providing for their comfort on board their vessel, as well as the means they have taken for the protection of their property.

"We also must express our indebtedness to that nation whose flag they so worthily bear, with an assurance that this act will be duly appreciated by our most gracious sovereign, her Majesty the Queen of Spain.

DON JOSE, RUIZ,
DON PEDRO MONTEZ."

Ruiz and Montez are thus described by a correspondent of the New London Gazette, who visited the Amistad immediately after its capture:

"Jose Ruiz, is a very gentlemanly and intelligent young man, and speaks English fluently. He was the owner of most of the slaves and cargo, which he was conveying to his estate on the Island of Cuba. The other, Pedro Montez, is about fifty years of age, and is the owner of three of the slaves. He was formerly a ship master, and has navigated the vessel since her seizure by the blacks. Both of them, as may be naturally supposed, are most unfeignedly thankful for their deliverance. Pedro is the most striking instance of complacency and unalloyed delight we have ever witnessed, and it is not strange, since only yesterday his sentence was pronounced by the chief of the bucaneers, and his death song chanted by the grim crew, who gathered with uplifted sabres around his devoted head, which, as well as his arms, bear the scars of several wounds inflicted at the time of the murder of the ill-fated captain and crew. He sat smoking his Havana on the deck, and to judge from the martyr-like serenity of his countenance, his emotions are such as rarely stir the heart of man. When Mr. Porter, the prize master, assured him of his safety, he threw his arms around his neck, while gushing tears coursing down his furrowed cheek, bespoke the overflowing transport of his soul. Every now and then he clasped his hands, and with uplifted eyes, gave thanks to 'the Holy Virgin' who had led him out of his troubles."

It will be necessary to contrast the deeds of these "gentlemanly and intelligent" Christians with that of the "ruthless gang of African bucaneers," from whose grasp they were so providentially rescued. In giving the subsequent detail, I would not be understood as compromising for a single instant my belief in the inviolability of human life, though it must I think be confessed that in the instance related below, the heathen and barbarous negroes contrast very favorably with the civilized and Christian Spaniards.

"The following communication from Mr. Day, of New Haven, gives a summary account of the African captives, as stated by themselves, from the time they left Africa, till the time they obtained possession of the Amistad:

"NEW HAVEN, OCT. 8, 1839.

[To the Editor of the Journal of Commerce.]

"Gentlemen—The following short and plain narrative of one or two of the African captives, in whose history and prospects such anxious interest is felt, has been taken at the earliest opportunity possible, consistently with more important examinations. It may be stated in general terms, as the result of the investigations thus far made, that the Africans all testify that they left Africa about six months since; were landed under cover of the night at a small village or hamlet near Havana, and after ten or twelve days were taken through Havana by night by the man who had bought them, named Pipi, who has since been satisfactorily proved to be Ruiz; were cruelly treated on the passage, being beaten and flogged, and in some instances having vinegar and gunpowder rubbed into their wounds; and that they suffered intensely from hunger and thirst. The perfect coincidence in the testimony of the prisoners, examined as they have been separately, is felt by all who are acquainted with the minutes of the examination, to carry with it overwhelming evidence of the truth of their story.

Yours respectfully,

"GEORGE E. DAY."

"MONDAY, OCT. 7.

"This afternoon, almost the first time in which the two interpreters, Covey and Pratt, have not been engaged with special reference to the trial to take place in November, one of the captives named Grabeau, was requested to give a narrative of himself since leaving Africa, for publication in the papers. The interpreters, who are considerably exhausted by the examinations which have already taken place, only gave the substance of what he said, without going into details, and it was not thought advisable to press the matter. Grabeau first gave an account of the passage from Africa to Havana. On board the vessel there was a large number of men, but the women and children were far the most numerous. They were fastened together in couples by the wrists and legs, and kept in that situation day and night. Here Grabeau and another of the Africans named Kimbo, lay down upon the floor, to show the painful position in which they were obliged to sleep. By day it was no better. The space between decks was so small,—according to their account not exceeding four feet,—that they were obliged, if they attempted to stand, to keep a crouching posture. The decks fore and aft were crowded to overflowing. They suffered (Grabeau said) terribly. They had rice enough to eat, but had very little to drink. If they left any of the rice that was given to them uneaten, either from sickness or any other cause, they were whipped. It was a common thing for them to be forced to eat so much as to vomit. Many of the men, women, and children died on the passage.

"They were landed by night at a small village near Havana. Soon several white men came to buy them, and among them was the one claiming to be their master, whom they call Pipi, said to be a Spanish nick-name for Jose. Pipi, or Ruiz, selected such as he liked, and made them stand in a row. He then felt each of them in every part of the body; made them open their mouths to see if their teeth were sound, and carried the examinations to a degree of minuteness of which only a slave dealer would be guilty.

"When they were separated from their companions who had come with them from Africa, there was weeping among the women and children, but Grabeau did not weep, 'because he is a man.' Kimbo, who sat by, said that he also shed no tears—but he thought of his home in Africa, and of friends left there whom he should never see again.

"The men bought by Ruiz were taken on foot through Havana in the night, and put on board a vessel. During the night they were kept in irons, placed about the hands, feet and neck. They were treated during the day in a somewhat milder manner, though all the irons were never taken off at once. Their allowance of food was very scant, and of water still more so. They were very hungry, and suffered much in the hot days and nights from thirst. In addition to this there was much whipping, and the cook told them that when they reached land they would all be eaten. This 'made their hearts burn.' To avoid being eaten, and to escape the bad treatment they experienced, they rose upon the crew with the design of returning to Africa.

"Such is the substance of Grabeau's story, confirmed by Kimbo, who was present most of the time. He says he likes the people of this country, because, to use his own expression, 'they are good people—they believe in God, and there is no slavery here.'

"The story of Grabeau was then read and interpreted to Cinque, while a number of the other Africans were standing about, and confirmed by all of them in every particular. When the part relating to the crowded state of the vessel from Africa to Havana was read, Cinque added that there was scarcely room enough to sit or lie down. Another showed the marks of the irons on his wrists, which must at the time have been terribly lacerated. On their separation at Havana, Cinque remarked that almost all of them were in tears, and himself among the rest, 'because they had come from the same country, and were now to be parted for ever.' To the question, how it was possible for the Africans when chained in the manner he described, to rise upon the crew, he replied that the chain which connected the iron collars about their necks was fastened at the end by a padlock, and that this was first broken, and afterwards the other irons. Their object, he said, in the affray, was to make themselves free. He then requested it to be added to the above, that 'if he tells a lie, God sees him by day and by night.'"

The interpreters alluded to in the preceding extract were two Africans belonging to the crew of the British brig of war Buzzard, which providentially arrived at New York, from a cruise on the coast of Africa. They were found to speak the same language as the prisoners, and with the consent of Captain Fitzgerald, their services were immediately secured by the indefatigable committee for the African captives. By their aid much information was elicited respecting the native country and previous history of these negroes, with many incidental particulars of great interest, some of which will appear in the following account. The criminal proceedings against the Mendians being quashed, there remained the claim of Ruiz and Montez to have the negroes returned to them as their property. To sustain this claim they produced the license, signed by the proper authorities at Havana, permitting the removal of these negroes from that port to Principe, in the same island. This document is signed by General Espelata, Captain-General of Cuba, and countersigned by Martinez, one of the most extensive slave-traders in the known world. This pass or license described the negroes as ladinos, a term used to designate Africans who have been long settled in Cuba. It was proved, however, that they were Bozal negroes, that is, such as had been very lately introduced, and the testimony on both sides, on this point, established a fact that is but too notorious, that the slave trade to Cuba is openly carried on with the connivance, and even with the corrupt participation of the authorities. One of the witnesses, D. Francis Bacon, gives the following account of the slave trade:—

"Mr. Bacon stated that he left the coast of Africa on the 13th of July, 1839. He knew a place called Dumbokoro [Lomboko] by the Spaniards: it was an island in the river or lagoon of Gallinas. There is a large slave factory or depot at this place, which is said to belong to the house of Martinez in Havana; there are also different establishments on different islands. Mr. Bacon stated that he had seen American, Russian, Spanish, and Portuguese vessels at Gallinas. The American flag was a complete shelter; no man-of-war daring to capture an American vessel. The slave trade on that part of the coast is the universal business of the country, and by far the most profitable, and all engaged in it who could raise the means. Extensive wars take place in Africa, for obtaining slaves from the vanquished. Different towns and villages make war upon each other for this purpose. Some are sold on account of their crimes, others for debts. The slaves are all brought on to the coast by other blacks, and sold at the slave factories, as no white man dare penetrate into the interior. Some of the blacks who have been educated at Sierra Leone, have been principal dealers in the slave trade."

The decision of the District Court of Connecticut on this question of property, was to the effect that since their original introduction into Cuba was plainly illegal, they were free by the law of Spain, and of course could not be the property of Spanish subjects.

The subsequent proceedings were undertaken on behalf of the United States' Government. "The District Attorney, Mr. Holabird, filed his claim under Lieut. Gedney's libel, on two distinct grounds; one that these Africans had been claimed by the Government of Spain, and ought to be retained till the pleasure of the Executive might be known, as to that demand; and the other, that they should be held subject to the disposition of the President, to be re-transported to Africa, under the act of 1819." The Court finally decreed that the Africans should be delivered to the President of the United States, to be transported to Africa, there to be delivered to an agent appointed to receive and conduct them home. Against this decision, though it is what he had asked for, Holabird appealed on behalf of the United States' Government, and through a protracted series of law proceedings, it was finally carried before the Supreme Court of the United States, the highest tribunal in the nation. The counsel employed on both sides, in the different stages, were of the highest reputation; and finally the venerable John Quincy Adams, after an absence from the Courts of nearly forty years, during which interval he had filled the highest offices of state, at home and abroad, in the service of his country, did not think it beneath him to defend the Mendians before the Supreme Court, against the conspiracies of Forsyth, the Secretary of State, and the Spanish Ambassador. In his first communication to the latter, Forsyth says:

"All the proceedings in the matter, on the part of both the executive and judicial branches of the government, have had their foundation in the assumption that Montez and Ruiz alone were the parties aggrieved; and that their claim to the surrender of the property was founded in fact and in justice."

The Spanish minister and his successor, complained bitterly, in the course of a long correspondence, of the delay in giving up the Africans, on the ground, as emphatically stated in one of their letters to the Department of State, that "the public vengeance had not been satisfied; for be it recollected that the legation of Spain does not demand the delivery of slaves, but of assassins." In a previous communication it was intimated that "the infliction of capital punishment in this case (in the United States,) would not be attended with the salutary effects had in view by the law, when it resorts to this painful and terrible alternative, namely, to prevent the commission of similar offences." Notwithstanding these dreadful intimations of the fate awaiting the Africans in Cuba, the American Government deliberately adopted the design of delivering them up, either as property or as assassins. That Government found willing agents in the United States' Marshal, and the District Attorney of Connecticut. The following extracts from the argument of John Quincy Adams, will explain these disgraceful transactions:

"On the 7th of January, the Secretary of State writes to the Secretary of the Navy, acknowledging the receipt of his letter of the 3d, informing him that the schooner Grampus would receive the negroes of the Amistad, 'for the purpose of conveying them to Cuba, in the event of their delivery being adjudged by the Circuit Court, before whom the case is pending.' This singular blunder, in naming the Court, shows in what manner and with how little care the Department of State allowed itself to conduct an affair, involving no less than the liberties and lives of every one of my clients. This letter enclosed the order of the President to the Marshal of Connecticut for the delivery of the negroes to Lieut. Paine. Although disposing of the lives of forty human beings, it has not the form or solemnity of a warrant, and is not even signed by the President in his official capacity. It is a mere order.

"'The Marshal of the United States for the District of Connecticut will deliver over to Lieut. John S. Paine, of the United States Navy, and aid in conveying on board the schooner Grampus, under his command, all the negroes, late of the Spanish schooner Amistad, in his custody, under process now pending before the Circuit Court of the United States for the District of Connecticut. For so doing, this order will be his warrant.

"'Given under my hand, at the city of Washington, this 7th day of January, A.D. 1840.

"'M. VAN BUREN.

"'By the President:

"'JOHN FORSYTH, Sec. of State.'

"That order is good for nothing at all. It did not even describe the Court correctly, under whose protection those unfortunate people were. And on the 11th of January, the District Attorney had to send a special messenger, who came, it appears, all the way to Washington in one day, to inform the Secretary that the negroes were not holden under the order of the Circuit Court, but of the District Court. And he says, 'Should the pretended friends of the negroes'—the pretended friends!—'obtain a writ of Habeas Corpus, the Marshal could not justify under that warrant.' And he says, 'the Marshal wishes me to inquire'—a most amiable and benevolent inquiry—'whether in the event of a decree requiring him to release the negroes, or in case of an appeal by the adverse party, it is expected the Executive warrant will be executed'—that is, whether he is to carry the negroes on board of the Grampus in the face of a decree of the Court. And he requests instructions on the point."

On the 12th of January, the very next day after the letter of the District Attorney was written at New Haven, the Secretary of State replies in a despatch which is marked 'confidential.'

"'[CONFIDENTIAL.]

"'DEPARTMENT OF STATE, Jan. 12,1840.

"'SIR,—Your letter of the 11th inst. has just been received. The order for the delivery of the negroes of the Amistad is herewith returned, corrected agreeably to your suggestion. With reference to the inquiry from the Marshal, to which you allude, I have to state, by direction of the President, that if the decision of the Court is such as is anticipated, the order of the President is to be carried into execution, unless an appeal shall actually have been interposed. YOU ARE NOT TO TAKE IT FOR GRANTED THAT IT WILL BE INTERPOSED. And if, on the contrary, the decision of the Court is different, you are to take out an appeal, and allow things to remain as they are until the appeal shall have been decided.

I am, sir, your obedient servant

"'JOHN FORSYTH.

"'W.S. HOLABIRD, Esq.,

"'Attorney U.S. for District of Conn.'

"But after all the order did not avail. The District Judge, contrary to all these anticipations of the Executive, decided that the thirty-six negroes taken by Lieut. Gedney and brought before the Court on the certificate of the Governor-General of Cuba, were FREEMEN; that they had been kidnapped in Africa; that they did not own these Spanish names; that they were not ladinos; and were not correctly described in the passport, but were new negroes bought by Ruiz in the depot of Havana, and fully entitled to their liberty."

At a public meeting held subsequent to their liberation, the teacher of the Africans made a statement as follows:—Their ruling passion was a love for home; and their desire to return thither was constantly manifesting itself. One day, a short time ago, Fohlee came to his teacher, with his cap in his hand, and said, "If Merican men offer me as much gold as fill this cap full up, and give me houses, land and every ting, so dat I stay in dis country, I say no! Is dat like my father? Is dat like my mother? Is dat like my sister? Is dat like my brother? No! I want to see my father, my mother, my brother and sister." This feeling manifested itself in many ways; and they expressed themselves willing to undergo any thing short of losing their lives, if by so doing they could be at liberty to return to the Mendi country.

I now introduce the lively narrative of my friend Lewis Tappan:

"EXCURSION WITH THE AMISTAD AFRICANS.

"On board Steam Boat, L.I. Sound, Nov. 15, 1841.

"BROTHER LEAVITT:—As the committee had chartered a ship to take the Mendians to Sierra Leone about the middle of this month, and as the funds contributed by a benevolent public were about all expended, it appeared necessary, in addition to an appeal published in the newspapers, to take some prompt and efficient measures to procure funds sufficient to pay for their outfit and passages, and, if possible, something to sustain the contemplated mission in Mendi. One of the committee being sick and another absent, it devolved upon me to perform the excursion. I was assisted essentially by Mr. Samuel Deming, one of the committee at Farmington, and by Mr. William Raymond and Mr. Needham. On arriving at Hartford, the third instant, I learned that Mr. Deming had proceeded to Boston, accompanied by ten of the Mendians, viz., Cinque, Banna, Si-si, Su-ma, Fu-li, Ya-bo-i, So-ko-ma, Kin-na, Ka-li and Mar-gru. These were selected not on account of being the best scholars, but with reference to their being the best singers, although some of them are among the best scholars. None of them, however, have had instruction in music. Arriving in Boston, the city was, as I anticipated, full of excitement, on account of the approaching election,—a circumstance unknown to the committee at Farmington, who had sent off the Mendians sooner than we had calculated,—and it seemed almost impossible to procure a suitable place in which to hold meetings, or to arrest the attention of the people, as the whole—democrats, whigs and abolitionists—had every nerve strained for the political contest. However, preparation had been made for a meeting at the Melodeon, late Lion Theatre, on Thursday evening. A few hundreds assembled, and appeared to be highly gratified with the performances. It seemed to them marvellous that these men and children, who, less than three years since, were almost naked savages in the interior of Africa, should, under the untoward circumstances in which they have been placed for the largest part of the time since they have been in a civilized and Christian country, appear so far advanced in civilization and knowledge. Only forty-six dollars were received, the proceeds of tickets and a collection, but a strong desire was expressed that there should be another meeting.

"Saturday evening was the only evening we could have Marlboro' Chapel, the largest church in the city. Preliminary to this meeting, a private meeting of invited gentlemen was held during the afternoon, at the Marlboro' Hotel, the Mendians being present. The meeting was well attended and a good impression was made. In the evening there was a large meeting in the Chapel; Rev. Dr. Anderson opened it with prayer, concluding with the Lord's prayer, each sentence being repeated in our language by the Mendians. A statement was then made of their past and present condition, of their good conduct, their proficiency, of their ardent desire to return to Mendi, and the favorable prospects of establishing a mission in their country. Three or four of the best readers were then called upon to read a passage in the New Testament. They then read and spelled a passage named by the audience. One of the Africans next related, in 'Merica language,' their condition in their own country, their being kidnapped, the sufferings of the middle passage, their stay at Havana, the transactions on board the Amistad, &c. The story was intelligible to the audience, with occasional explanations. They were next requested to sing two or three of their native songs. The performance afforded great delight to the audience. As a pleasing contrast, however, they sang immediately after, one of the songs of Zion:

"'When I can read my title clear
To mansions in. the skies,
I'll bid farewell to every fear,
And wipe my weeping eyes.'

"This produced a deep impression upon the audience; and while these late pagans were singing so correctly and impressively a hymn in a Christian church, many 'weeping eyes,' bore testimony that the act and its associations touched a chord that vibrated in many hearts. Cinque was then introduced to the audience, and addressed them in his native tongue. It is impossible to describe the novel and deeply interesting manner in which he acquitted himself. The subject of his speech was similar to that of his countryman who had addressed the audience in English, but he related more minutely and graphically the occurrences on board the Amistad. The easy manner of Cinque, his natural, graceful and energetic action, the rapidity of his utterance, and the remarkable and various expressions of his countenance, excited the admiration and applause of the audience. He was pronounced a powerful natural orator, and one born to sway the minds of his fellow men. Should he be converted and become a preacher of the cross in Africa, what delightful results may be anticipated!

"The amount of the statements made by Kin-na, Fu-li and Cinque, and the facts in the case, are as follows:—These Mendians belong to six different tribes, although their dialects are not so dissimilar as to prevent them from conversing together very readily. Most of them belong to a country which they call Mendi, but which is known to geographers and travellers as Kos-sa, and lies south-east of Sierra Leone; as we suppose, from sixty to one hundred and twenty miles. With one or two exceptions, these Mendians are not related to each other; nor did they know each other until they met at the slave factory of Pedro Blanco, the wholesale trafficker in men, at Lomboko, on the coast of Africa. They were stolen separately, many of them by black men, some of whom were accompanied by Spaniards, as they were going from one village to another, or were at a distance from their abodes. The whole came to Havana in the same ship, a Portuguese vessel named Tecora, except the four children, whom they saw, for the first time, on board the Amistad. It seems that they remained at Lomboko several weeks, until six or seven hundred were collected, when they were put in irons and placed in the hold of a ship, which soon put to sea. Being chased by a British cruiser, she returned, landed the cargo of human beings, and the vessel was seized and taken to Sierra Leone for adjudication. After some time, the Africans were put on board the Tecora. After suffering the horrors of the middle passage, they arrived at Havana. Here they were put into a barracoon, one of the oblong enclosures, without a roof, where human beings are kept, as they keep sheep and oxen near the cattle markets, in the vicinity of our large cities, until purchasers are found, for ten days, when they were sold to Jose Ruiz, and shipped on board the Amistad, together with the three girls and a little boy who came on board with Pedro Montez. The Amistad was a coaster, bound to Principe, in Cuba, distant some two or three hundred miles. The Africans were kept in chains and fetters, and were supplied with but a small quantity of food or water. A single banana, they say, was served out as food for a day or two, and only a small cup of water for each daily. When any of them took a little water from the cask, they were severely flogged. The Spaniards took Antonio, the cabin-boy and slave to Captain Ferrer, and stamped him on the shoulder with a hot iron; then put powder, palm oil, &c. upon the wound, so that they 'could know him for their slave.' The cook, a colored Spaniard, told them that on their arrival at Principe, in three days, they would have their throats cut, be chopped in pieces, and salted down for meat for the Spaniards. He pointed to some barrels of beef on the deck, then to an empty barrel, and by significant gestures,—as the Mendians say, by 'talking with his fingers,'—he made them understand that they were to be slain, &c. At four o'clock that day, when they were called on deck to eat, Cinque found a nail, which he secreted under his arm. In the night they held a counsel as to what was best to be done. 'We feel bad,' said Kin-na, 'and we ask Cinque what we had best do. Cinque say, "Me think, and by and by I tell you."' He then said, 'If we do nothing, we be killed. We may as well die in trying to be free as to be killed and eaten.' Cinque afterwards told them what he would do. With the aid of the nail and the assistance of Grabeau, he freed himself from the irons on his wrists and ancles, and from the chain on his neck. He then, with his own hands, wrested the irons from the limbs and necks of his countrymen. It is not in my power to give an adequate description of Cinque when he showed how he did this and led his comrades to the conflict and achieved their freedom. In my younger years I saw Kemble and Siddons, and the representation of Othello, at Covent Garden, but no acting that I ever witnessed came near that to which I allude. When delivered from their irons, the Mendians, with the exception of the children, who were asleep, about four or five o'clock in the morning, armed with cane-knives, some boxes of which they found in the hold, leaped upon the deck. Cinque killed the cook. The captain fought desperately. He inflicted wounds on two of the Africans, who soon after died, and cut severely one or two of those who now survive. Two sailors leaped over the side of the vessel. The Mendians say 'they could not catch land—they must have swum to the bottom of the sea,' but Ruiz and Montez supposed they reached the island in a boat. Cinque now took command of the vessel; placed Si-si at the helm; gave his people plenty to eat and drink. Ruiz and Montez had fled to the hold. They were dragged out, and Cinque ordered them to be put in irons. They cried and begged not to be put in chains, but Cinque replied, 'You say fetters good for negro—if good for negro good for Spanish man too: you try them two days, and see how you feel.' The Spaniards asked for water, and it was dealt out to them in the same little cup with which they had dealt it out to the Africans. They complained bitterly of being thirsty. Cinque said, 'You say little water enough for nigger. If little water do for him, a little do for you too.' Cinque said the Spaniards cried a great deal; he felt very sorry; only meant to let them see how good it was to be treated like the poor slaves. In two days the irons were removed; and then, said Cinque, we give them plenty water and food, and treat them very well. Kin-na stated that as the water fell short, Cinque would not drink any, nor allow any of the rest to drink any thing but salt water, but dealt out daily a little to each of the four children, and the same quantity to each of the two Spaniards! In a day or two Ruiz and Montez wrote a letter, and told Cinque that when they spoke a vessel, if he would give it to them, the people would take them to Sierra Leone. Cinque took the letter and said, 'Very well;' but afterwards told his brethren, 'We have no letter in Mendi. I don't know what is in that letter—there may be death in it. So we will take some iron and a string, bind them about the letter, and send it to the bottom of the sea.'

"When any vessel came in sight, the Spaniards were shut down in the hold, and forbidden to come on deck on pain of death. One of the Africans, who could talk a little English, answered questions when they were hailed from other vessels.

"It is unnecessary to narrate here subsequent facts, as they have been published throughout the country. After Cinque's address a collection was taken, and the services were concluded by the Mendians singing Bishop Heber's missionary hymn:

"'From Greenland's icy mountains.'

"At the conclusion of the meeting some linen and cotton table cloths and napkins, manufactured by the Africans, were exhibited, and eagerly purchased of them by persons present, at liberal prices. They are in the habit of purchasing linen and cotton at the shops, unravelling the edges about six to ten inches, and making, with their fingers, neat fringes, in imitation, they say, of 'Mendi fashion.' Large numbers of the audience advanced, and took Cinque and the rest by the hand. The transactions of this meeting have thus been stated at length, and the account will serve to show how the subsequent meetings were conducted, as the services in other places were similar.

"These Africans, while in prison, (which was the largest part of the time they have been in this country) learned but little comparatively, but since they have been liberated, they have been anxious to learn, as they said 'it would be good for us in our own country.' Many of them write well, read, spell and sing well, and have attended to arithmetic. The younger ones have made great progress in study. Most of them have much fondness for arithmetic. They have also cultivated as a garden fifteen acres of land, and have raised a large quantity of corn, potatoes, onions, beets, et cet., which will be useful to them at sea. In some places we visited, the audience were astonished at the performance of Kali, who is only eleven years of age. He would not only spell any word in either of the Gospels, but spell sentences, without any mistake, such sentences as 'Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth,' naming each letter and syllable, and recapitulating as he went along, until he pronounced the whole sentence. Two hundred and seven dollars were received at this meeting.

"'On Sabbath evening a meeting was attended in Rev. Mr. Beman's Church, (colored.) It was impossible for all to gain admittance--collected sixteen dollars and fifty-one cents. The same evening a meeting was held at Elder N. Colver's. A very warm interest was manifested by this congregation, and the sum of ninety dollars was contributed. The next morning a respectable mechanic, a member of this church, offered to go to Mendi with his wife and child, to take up their permanent abode there. On Monday we proceeded to Haverhill. It was a rainy day, and town meeting was held at the same hour. The audience was small, but a deep interest was felt, and fifty-six dollars contributed. Rev. Charles Fitch opened the meeting with prayer. The Mendians and their friends will long remember the hospitality and generosity of their friends in this place. After a stay of two hours, we proceeded to Lowell. The heavy rain prevented a general attendance. Only thirty-one dollars was collected, beside some private donations. Mr. John Levi, a colored citizen, rendered important services to us, and several of the clergymen and other inhabitants rendered efficient aid. On Tuesday we went to Nashua, N.H., and remained two hours. Owing to some untoward circumstances, the inhabitants generally had not been notified of the meeting. A small number only attended. The collection was twenty-seven dollars. In the evening at Lowell, the large Methodist Church, St. Paul's, was crowded, one thousand five hundred people being present, it was said, and many hundreds unable to get admission. The meeting was opened with an appropriate prayer by Rev. Luther Lee. In order to give an opportunity to the audience to see and hear Cinque, he was invited into the pulpit, where he made an energetic address. One hundred and six dollars were collected. At the close of the services, nearly the whole congregation came forward and took the Mendians by the hand, with kind words and many presents. The ministers of all denominations attended the meeting, with many of the most respectable citizens. During the day the Africans were invited to visit the 'Boott Corporation,' and were conducted over the whole establishment (cotton mills,) by the agent, Mr. French. As might be supposed, they were astonished beyond measure. After inspecting the machinery, the fabrics, and the great wheel, one of them turned to me and said, 'Did man make this?' On receiving a reply, he said, 'He no live now—he live a great while ago.' Afterwards they visited the carpet factory, and expressed great delight at the beauty and excellence of the carpets and rugs. Cinque wished to purchase a miniature hearth rug, but the agent allowed him to select one of the large and beautiful rugs to take to Mendi, which he generously presented to him. The workmen here—chiefly Englishmen—made a collection of fifty-eight dollars and fifty cents on the spot, and presented it to the Mendi Fund.

"In pursuance of previous arrangements, we turned aside, Wednesday, November 12, to attend a meeting in the large South Church in Andover, at 9 o'clock, A.M. The house was crowded in every part. Dr. Edwards led in prayer, and Dr. Woods interrogated some of the Mendians. After a stay of two hours we returned to the cars, followed by a large multitude. Collected eighty-four dollars. It was remarked at the meeting here, as in other places, that the contemplated mission to Mendi was to be an anti-slavery mission; that no money would be solicited or received of slave holders; that the committee were not connected with any other missionary associations, and would not assume a hostile attitude towards any. A young gentleman here offered to go to Mendi as a teacher.

"In the afternoon a meeting was held in Boston, at the Marlboro' Chapel. The scholars in the Sabbath and week-day schools had been notified of it and attended in large numbers, together with several respectable inhabitants of Boston and the neighboring towns. The meeting was opened with prayer by Rev. W.B. Tappan. The collection was one hundred and ten dollars. In the evening a meeting was held at the Melodeon, and was attended by a large number of persons. Collection one hundred and thirty-three dollars. The next day, Thursday the 11th, we left for Springfield. The meeting was held in the evening, at the Town Hall, as some of the Parish committee objected to its being held in the church, fearing it would desecrate the place. The Hall was crowded, and many could not gain admittance. Dr. Osgood opened the meeting with prayer, took several of the Mendians to his own house, and manifested a deep interest on their behalf, as did many of the other inhabitants. The Mendians were all hospitably entertained in this place without expense. Some 'fellows of the baser sort' insulted Kin-na and others as they went to the Hall; and in the introduction of his speech, Kin-na spoke of the treatment he had received. But there are many warm-hearted and generous friends of the colored race in this town. 'We said nothing to them,' said Kin-na; 'why did they treat us so? What can we do? We are few and feeble. What can the dog do when the lion attacks him; or what can be done when the cat and the mouse come together!' Collection seventy-three dollars. The Mendians were invited by Mr. Burleigh to see a large picture exhibiting here—'The Descent of Christ from the Cross,' copied from Rubens—and were highly gratified.

"Here we received a cordial invitation from two of the ministers of Northampton and several of their people to visit that place, with the assurance that the First Church, the largest in the county, should be opened for the Mendians. On the 12th we rode to N. in the rain. Mount Tom and the Connecticut River were pointed out to Cinque, who said, 'In my country we have very great mountain—much bigger than that—and river about so wide, but very deep.' The weather cleared away towards night, and the church was nearly filled. Rev. Mr. Pennington, colored minister of Hartford, opened the meeting with prayer. Collection seventy-five dollars, in addition to seventeen dollars from the Female Abolition Society; fifty-three dollars collected before we arrived, and eighty-five contributed by 'a friend,' a short time since. The reception here was warm-hearted. Mr. Warner, keeper of the principal hotel in that place, furnished the Mendians with one of his best rooms, seated them at the table with his family and boarders, and, on being asked for his bill the next day, he replied, 'There is nothing to pay!' The agents of the Nashua and Andover rail roads also declined taking pay for the passages of the Mendians. On Saturday, we rose at 3 o'clock, P.M., and returned to Springfield. Here we took the steam boat for Hartford. On arriving, application was made to Mr. Colton, keeper of the Temperance Hotel, to accommodate the Mendians. He demurred. Mr. Warner's noble treatment of them was mentioned. Mr. C. said he could not place them at his table. He was told that this was not insisted upon; that if he would furnish me a room they could eat there, and sleep wherever it was convenient to Mr. C. But he absolutely refused to entertain them any how. As this house has been patronized by abolitionists, they ought to know this fact. After remaining in the cold on the wharf about an hour, the Mendians were received and hospitably entertained by several families without charge.

"On the Sabbath, November 14, they attended public worship in Rev. Mr. Pennington's church. In the afternoon the church was filled. An address was made by the writer, and the Mendians read in the Testament and sang a hymn. Collection eight dollars. In the evening a meeting was held in the Centre Church, Rev. Dr. Hawes's. Notices were read in the other churches, and handbills had been posted the previous day. The church, in every part, was crowded, and large numbers were unable to obtain admittance. Dr. Hawes opened the meeting with prayer. The services were of an interesting character. Collection eighty dollars. Dr. Hawes interrogated Kin-na. He said, 'The Mendi people believe in a Great Spirit, although they do not worship him. They know they have souls. We think,' said Kin-na, 'we make clothes. Dog can't do this. He no soul, but we have.' He said on another occasion, when asked if his people believed in a future state, 'The Mendi people all Sadducees.' Kin-na said that they 'owe every thing to God. He keep them alive, and give them free. When he go home to Mendi, they tell their brethren about God, Jesus Christ, and heaven.' Fu-li, on a former evening, being asked, 'What is faith?' replied, 'Believing in Jesus Christ, and trusting in him.' Their answers to questions show that they have read and that they understand the Scriptures, and hopes are entertained that one or two at least know experimentally the value of religion. The fact that there is no system of idolatry in Mendi for missionaries to oppose and the natives technically to adhere to, is an encouraging fact with regard to the contemplated mission. Another pleasing and remarkable fact exists: labor is suspended every seventh day, and has been from time immemorial. They do not engage in any religious services, but dress in their best apparel, feast on that day,—as some do here,—visit, &c. This day, 15th, Rev. Mr. Gallaudet and Mr. Brigham have invited the Mendians to visit the Deaf and Dumb Asylum and the Insane Institution. On a person's giving, by signs, the deaf and dumb alphabet to Mar-gru, one of the girls, she, in a few minutes, repeated nearly the whole. They told Mr. Brigham that there were insane people and idiots in Mendi, and described their actions and the treatment of them. Two of the Mendians will be detained as witnesses in Hartford this day, in a cause appealed from a lower court. Some of the Mendians were grossly assaulted at Farmington some time since, on a training day; and those who committed the assault and battery were convicted and fined. An appeal was taken. When thus assailed, the Mendians, as usual, exhibited their peaceful disposition, and said, 'We no fight.' On Wednesday there is to be a large fare meeting at Farmington—on which occasion Dr. Hawes is to preach. In a few days the Mendians will embark from New York. May the Lord preserve them, and carry them safely to their native land, to their kindred and homes. Su-ma, the eldest, has a wife and five children. Cinque has a wife and three children. They all have parents or wives, or brothers and sisters. What a meeting it will be with these relations and friends, when they are descried on the hills of Mendi! We were invited to visit other places, but time did not allow of longer absence. I must not forget to mention that the whole band of these Mendi are teetotallers. At a tavern where we stopped, Ban-na took me aside, and with a sorrowful countenance, said, 'This bad house—bar house—no good.' But the steam boat is at the wharf, and I must close. The collections in money, on this excursion of twelve days, is about one thousand dollars, after deducting travelling expenses. More money is needed to defray the expenses of the Mendians to their native land, and to sustain their religious teachers. Very truly yours,

"LEWIS TAPPAN."

But to conclude the narrative of these interesting Africans. After all the trickery on the part of the U.S. government, it was finally decreed by the Supreme Court, that the Mendians were free persons, and might go whither they pleased. They were unanimous for returning to their native country. The Mendian negroes, thirty-five in number, embarked from New York for Sierra Leone, on the 27th of the 11th month, (November,) 1841, on board the barque Gentleman, Captain Morris, accompanied by five missionaries and teachers. The British government has manifested a praiseworthy interest in their welfare, and will assist them to reach their own country from Sierra Leone. Their stay in the United States has been of immense service to the anti-slavery cause, and there is reason to hope that under their auspices, Christianity and civilization may be introduced into their native country.

APPENDIX F. p. 76.

Extract from an Essay by WILLIAM JAY, "On the Folly and Evils of War, and the Means of Preserving Peace."

"But, after all that can be said against war, and after the fullest admission of its folly, cruelty, and wickedness, still the question recurs, how can it be prevented? It would be an impeachment of the Divine economy to suppose that an evil so dreadful was inseparably and inevitably connected with human society. We are informed, by Divine authority, that wars proceed from our lusts; but our lusts, although natural to us, are not invincible. He who admits the free agency of man, will not readily allow that either individuals or nations are compelled to do evil. The universal prevalence of Christian principles must, of necessity, exterminate wars; and hence we are informed, by revelation, that when righteousness shall cover the earth, 'the nations shall learn war no more.'

"And are we to wait, it will be inquired, till this distant and uncertain period for the extinction of war? We answer, that revelation affords us no ground to expect that all mankind will previously be governed by the precepts of justice and humanity; but that experience, reason, and revelation, all unite in leading us to believe that the regeneration of the world will be a gradual and progressive work. Civilization and Christianity are diffusing their influence throughout the globe, mitigating the sufferings and multiplying the enjoyments of the human family. Free institutions are taking the place of feudal oppressions—education is pouring its light on minds hitherto enveloped in all the darkness of ignorance—the whole system of slavery, both personal and political, is undermined by public opinion, and must soon be prostrated; and the signs of the times assure us that the enormous mass of crime and wretchedness, which is the fruit of drunkenness, will, at no very remote period, disappear from the earth.

"And can it be possible, that, of all the evils under which humanity groans, war is the only one which religion and civilization, and the active philanthropy of the present day, can neither remove nor mitigate? Such an opinion, if general, would be most disastrous to the world, and it will now be our endeavor to prove that it is utterly groundless.     *     *     *     *

"We have often seen extensive national alliances for the prosecution of war, and no sufficient reason can be assigned why such alliances might not be formed for the preservation of peace. It is obvious that war might instantly be banished from Europe, would its nations regard themselves as members of one great Society, and erect a court for the trial and decision of their respective differences.

"But we are told that such an agreement among the nations is impossible. It is unquestionably so at present, for the obvious reason, that time is necessary to enlighten and direct public opinion, and produce a general acquiescence in the plan, as well as to arrange the various stipulations and guaranties that would be requisite. It is certainly not surprising, that those who suppose a congress of nations for the maintenance of peace, can only be brought about by a simultaneous movement of the various states and kingdoms of the earth, who are to continue to battle with each other till the signal is given for universal peace and harmony, should be startled at the boldness and absurdity of the project. But this boldness and absurdity belong not to the project we advocate. We have no expectation whatever of any general, much less simultaneous effort of mankind in behalf of peace. A congress for the decision of national differences, instead of arising in the midst of the present military policy of Europe, must be preceded by an extensive, although partial abandonment of war, and will be the effect and not the cause of the general diffusion of pacific sentiments.

"Hence it is in vain to look for a sudden and universal cessation of war, even among civilized and Christian nations. But reason and experience warrant the hope that some one State may be led to adopt a pacific policy, and thus set an example which through the blessing of Providence, and the prevalence of Christian principles, may usher in the reign of universal peace.

"But by whom, and in what way it will be asked, is this example to be set? It may be a feeling of national vanity, and it may be a reference to the peculiarities of our local, social, and political condition, that inspires the hope, that to the United States is to be reserved the glory of teaching to mankind the blessings of peace, and the means of preserving them.     *     *

"But in what way are we to make the experiment? Certainly in the way least likely to excite alarm and opposition. In every effort to promote the temporal or spiritual welfare of others, we should consider things as they really are, and not merely as they ought to be, and we should consult expediency as far as we can do so, without compromising principle.     *     *     *

"Of all the nations with whom we have relations, none probably enjoy in an equal degree our good will, as France. No spirit of rivalry in commerce or manufactures exists between us, no adjacent territory furnishes occasion for border aggressions and mutual criminations, while our past relations afford subjects of pleasing and grateful recollection, and at present we see no prospect of the interruption of that harmony which has so long subsisted between the two nations.

"Let us suppose that under these propitious circumstances, a convention should now be concluded between the two governments, by which it should be agreed, that if unhappily any difference should hereafter arise between us, that could not be adjusted by negociation, neither party should resort to arms, but that they should agree on some friendly power, to whom the matter in difference should be referred, and whose decision should be final; or that if it should so happen that the parties could not concur in selecting an umpire, that then each party should select a friendly power, and that the sovereigns or states thus selected, should, if necessary, call to their aid the assistance of a third.

"To what well founded objections would such a treaty be subject? It is true that treaties of this kind have been of rare occurrence, but all experience is in their favor. Vattel remarks (Law of Nations, book II., chap. 18,) 'Arbitration is a method very reasonable, very conformable to the law of nature, in determining differences that do not directly interest the safety of the nation. Though the strict right may be mistaken by the arbitrator, it is still more to be feared that it will be overwhelmed by the fate of arms. The Swiss have had the precaution in all their alliances among themselves, and even in those they have contracted with the neighboring powers, to agree beforehand on the manner in which their disputes were to be submitted to arbitrators, in case they could not adjust them in an amicable manner. This wise precaution has not a little contributed to maintain the Helvetic Republic in that flourishing state which secures its liberty, and renders it respectable throughout Europe.'

"But it may be said, a nation ought not to permit others to decide on her rights and claims. Why not? Will the decision be less consistent with justice, from being impartial and disinterested? It is a maxim confirmed by universal experience, that no man should be judge in his own cause; and are nations less under the influence of interest and of passion than individuals? Are they not, in fact, still less under the control of moral obligation? Treaties have often been violated by statesmen and senators, who would have shrunk from being equally faithless in their private contracts. Is it to be supposed that the government of a friendly power, in a controversy between us and France, in which it had no interest, and with the observation of the civilized world directed to its decision, would be less likely to pronounce a fair and impartial judgment than either France or ourselves?

"But we can decide our own controversies for ourselves, it is said; that is, we can go to war and take our chance for the result. Alas, 'it is an error,' says Vattel, 'no less absurd than pernicious, to say that war is to decide controversies between those who, as in the case of nations, acknowledge no judge. It is power or prudence rather than right that victory usually declares for.'—Book III. Chap. 3.

"The United States chose to decide for themselves the controversy about impressment, by appealing to the sword. In this appeal they of course placed no reliance on the propriety and justice of their claims, since such considerations could have no influence on the fate of battle; but they depended solely on their capacity to inflict more injury than they would receive themselves, and this difference in the amount of injury was to turn the scale in our favor. Our expectations, however, were disappointed. Our commerce was annihilated, our frontier towns were laid in ashes, our capital taken, our attempts upon Canada were repulsed, with loss and disgrace; our people became burthened with taxes, and we were at last glad to accept a treaty of peace which, instead of containing, as we had fondly hoped, a formal surrender on the part of Great Britain of the right of impressment, made not the slightest allusion to the subject.

"Let us now suppose that a treaty similar to the one we have proposed with France had, in 1812, existed between Great Britain and the United States; the question of impressment would then have been submitted to one or more friendly powers.

"It is scarcely possible that the umpires could have given any decision of this question that would have been as injurious to either party as was the prosecution of the war. Had the claims of Great Britain been sanctioned, some American seamen would, no doubt, have been occasionally compelled to serve in the British navy; but how very small would have been their number compared with the thousands who perished in the war; and how utterly insignificant would have been their sufferings resulting from serving on board a British instead of an American vessel, when weighed against the burdens, the slaughters, the conflagrations, inflicted on their country in the contest? If, on the other hand, the decision had been in our favor, Great Britain would have lost a few seamen from her navy, but she would have saved the lives of a far greater number, and she would have been spared an amount of treasure which would have commanded the services of ten times as many sailors as she could ever hope to recover by impressment.

"It is not, however, probable, that the umpires, anxious to do right, and having no motive to do wrong, would have sanctioned, without qualification, the claims of either party.

"We can scarcely anticipate any future national difference which it would not be more prudent and expedient to submit to arbitration than to the chance of war. However just may be our cause, however united our people, we cannot foresee the issue of the contest, nor tell what new enemies we may be called to encounter, what sacrifices to bear, what concessions to make.

"We have already partially commenced the experiment of arbitrament, by referring no less than three of our disputes to the determination of as many friendly powers. A difference as to the meaning of an article, in our last treaty of peace with Great Britain, was referred to the Emperor of Russia, who decided it in our favor. The question of our northern boundary was referred to the King of the Netherlands; and although the line he assigned was not the one claimed by either party, it was vastly less injurious to each, than would have been one month's hostility on account of it. Our disputes with Mexico were verging rapidly to open war, when they were happily submitted to the King of Prussia, and are now in the course of satisfactory adjustment.

"A treaty with France of the character proposed, would greatly increase our importance in the estimation of all Europe—as it would permanently secure us from her hostility. It would be seen and felt, that whatever other nation might enter into collision with us, it could not expect the aid of France, but that under all circumstances we should enjoy the friendship and commerce of our ancient ally. These considerations would not be without their influence on England. She has colonies near us which we may capture, or essentially injure, and which cannot be defended by her, but at very inconvenient expense. A war with us must ever be undesired by her, for the obvious reason that in such a contest she has little to gain and much to lose. Our treaty also with France would deprive England of the aid of the only nation that could afford her effectual assistance in a war against us. She would therefore, find it her interest to avail herself of a similar treaty, and thus to secure herself from hostilities which on many accounts she must wish to avoid. Once assured by such treaties of permanent peace with France and England, we should find our alliance courted by the other powers of Europe, who would not readily consent that those two nations should have exclusively the uninterrupted enjoyment of our great and growing commerce. They would think it a matter of prudence also, to avoid the risk of collision with a powerful republic, that had already secured the permanent friendship of France and England; and they would hasten to contract similar treaties. Under such circumstances, every consideration of policy would prompt our South American neighbors to desire that their amicable relations with us might remain uninterrupted; and to them we might offer the same stipulations with full confidence of their cordial acceptance.

"And will it be said that all this is visionary and impossible? The plan we propose rests on no supposed reformation in the passions and propensities of mankind; but upon obvious principles of national interest, deduced from reason and experience, and susceptible of the plainest demonstration. It is a plan adapted to the existing state of civilized society, and accommodated to the passions and prejudices by which that society is influenced. It is indeed perfectly consistent with the precepts of Christianity, but it is also in accordance with the selfish dictates of worldly policy.

"To this plan we can imagine only one plausible objection, which is, that the treaties would not be observed. It is readily admitted that if the only guaranty for the faithful observance of these treaties consisted in the virtue and integrity of those who signed them, the confidence to be reposed in them would be faint indeed. Happily, however, we have a far stronger guaranty in national interest and in public opinion.     *     *     *

"Dismissing then all idle fears that these treaties, honestly contracted and obviously conducive to the highest interests of the parties, would not be observed, let us contemplate the rich and splendid blessings they would confer on our country. Protected from hostile violence and invasion by a moral defence, more powerful than armies and navies, we might indeed beat our swords into ploughshares and our spears into pruning hooks. The millions now expended in our military establishments could be applied to objects directly ministering to human convenience and happiness. Our whole militia system, with its long train of vices and its vexatious interruptions of labor, would be swept away. The arts of peace would alone be cultivated, and would yield comforts and enjoyments in a profusion and perfection of which mankind have witnessed no example. In the expressive language of Scripture, our citizens would each 'sit under his own vine and under his own fig tree, with none to make him afraid,' and our peaceful and happy republic would be the praise and glory of all lands.     *     *     *     *     *

"It is impossible that a scene so bright and lovely should not attract the admiration and attention of the world. The extension of education in Europe, and the growing freedom of her institutions, are leading her population to think, and to express their thoughts. The governments of the eastern continent, whatever may be their form, are daily becoming more and more sensitive to public opinion. The people already restive under their burdens, would soon discover that those burdens would be greatly diminished by the adoption of the American policy. Before long, some state would commence the experiment on a small scale, and its example would be followed by others. In time these conventions would give way to more extended pacific alliances, and a greater number of umpires would be selected; nor is it the vain hope of idle credulity, that at last a union might be formed, embracing every Christian nation, for guarantying the peace of Christendom, by establishing a tribunal for the adjustment of national differences, and by preventing all forcible resistance to its decrees.

"It is unnecessary to discuss, at this time, the character and powers with which such a tribunal should be invested. Whenever it shall be desired, little difficulty will be experienced in devising for it a satisfactory organization; that it is possible to form such a court, and that next to Christianity it would be the richest gift ever bestowed by Heaven upon our suffering world, will be doubted by few who have patiently and candidly investigated the subject.

"But many who admit the advantages and practicability of the plan we have proposed, will be tempted to despair of success, by the apparent difficulty of inducing an effort for its accomplishment. Similar difficulties, however, have been experienced and overcome. The abolition of the slave trade, and the suppression of intemperance were once as apparently hopeless as the cessation of war. Let us again recur for instruction and encouragement to the course pursued by the friends of freedom and temperance. Had the British abolitionists employed themselves in addressing memorials to the various courts of Europe, soliciting them to unite in a general agreement to abandon the traffic, they would unquestionably have labored in vain, and spent their strength for nought. They adopted another and a wiser course. They labored to awaken the consciences of their own countrymen, and to persuade them to do justice and to love mercy; and thus to set an example to the rest of Europe, infinitely more efficacious than all the arguments and remonstrances which reason and eloquence could dictate.

"In vain might moralists and philanthropists have declaimed for ages on the evils of drunkenness, had no temperance society been formed till all mankind were ready to adopt a pledge of total abstinence. The authors of the temperance reformation did not lavish their strength and resources in attempting to convince the world of the blessings of temperance, but forming themselves into a temperance society, gave a visible and tangible proof that the principle they recommended was not merely expedient but practicable. And surely if we desire to persuade mankind that war is an unnecessary evil, it is indispensable that we should be able to point them to some instance in which it has been safely dispensed with; nor can we hope to effect a change in the opinion of Europe, while our own people remain unaffected by our assertions and arguments.

"Here then must be the field of our labors; and let those labors be quickened by the reflection, that while they are aimed at the happiness of the human race, they are calculated to confer on our beloved country a moral sublimity which no worldly glory can approach.

"But what are the means we shall use? The same by which the commerce in human beings was destroyed, and which are now driving intemperance from the earth—voluntary associations and the press.

"Let the friends of peace concentrate their exertions in Peace Societies; and let the press proclaim throughout our land, in all its length and breadth, the folly, the wickedness, and the horrors of war; and call on our rulers to provide for the amicable adjustment of national differences. In the first treaty that shall be formed for this purpose we shall behold the dawn of that glorious day, the theme of prophets and the aspirations of saints, when nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war any more.

"The present age is propitious to the enterprise. It is an age of energy and of freedom. All the powers of mind are in full activity, and every eye and every ear is open to the reception of new truths. Science and philanthropy are daily achieving triumphs which the past century dared not imagine. The world is no longer governed by princes and senates, but by public opinion, and at the fiat of this mighty potentate, ancient institutions are levelled in the dust. Let this despot wield only a delegated authority, and each individual, however humble, can enhance or diminish his power. Who, then, will refuse to lend his assistance to enable public opinion to say to the troubled nations, 'peace—be still;' and to compel the rulers of the earth to refer their disputes to another tribunal than the sword.

"In this cause every man can labor, and it is a cause in which every man is called to labor, by interest and by duty. But it is a cause that peculiarly claims the zeal and devotion of Christians. They are the servants of Him who is not only the mighty God and the everlasting Father, but the Prince of Peace. They know that war is opposed to all his attributes, and contradicts the precepts of his word. Conscience gives her sanction to the means we have proposed, and prophecy assures us of the accomplishment of the object to which they are directed. Why, then, will not Christians use the talents and influence given them from above to effect this consummation? Let them not plead, in excuse for listlessness and indifference, that it is God alone who 'maketh wars to cease to the end of the earth.' In the moral government of the world, the purposes of its Almighty Ruler are accomplished by his blessing upon human means. He has promised that righteousness shall cover the whole earth; and in reliance on this promise, his servants are now bearing the everlasting Gospel to every nation and kindred, and tongue and people. He has also promised that nations shall learn war no more, and in his faithfulness we have all the incentive which certainty of ultimate success can give to human exertion. And in what cause can the energies of Christian benevolence be more appropriately exercised? To prevent war is to avoid the effusion of human blood, and the commission of innumerable crimes and atrocities;—it is to diffuse peace, and comfort, and happiness, through the great family of man,—it is to foster the arts and sciences which minister to the wants of society,—it is to check the progress of vice,—to speed the advance of the gospel,—to rescue immortal souls from endless misery,—and to secure to them a felicity as durable as it is inconceivable.

"To him who in faith and zeal labors in this great and holy cause a rich reward is secured. While doing good to others, he is himself a sharer in the blessing he bestows. The very exercise of his benevolent affections affords a pure and exquisite delight, and when he enters the world of peace and love, he shall experience the full import of those cheering, but mysterious words—Blessed are the peace makers, for they shall be called the children of God."'

APPENDIX G. p. 89.

OPIUM WAR WITH CHINA.

"TO THE CHRISTIAN PUBLIC OF GREAT BRITAIN.

"In again appealing to you in reference to the opium war in China, I will begin by quoting the following extracts from a letter which I addressed to you on the 19th of the Third Month, 1840.

"'It is now too notorious to render needful entering at large into the subject, that the guilty traffic in opium, grown by the East India Company, to be smuggled into China, at length compelled the Chinese Government to vindicate the laws of the Empire, which prohibit its introduction, and to take decisive measures for the suppression of the traffic, by the arrest of the parties concerned in it at Canton, and the seizure and destruction of the opium found in the Chinese waters.[A] It is also well known that the superintendent of the British trade, (Capt. Elliott) so far compromised his official character and duty, as to take under his protection one of the most extensive opium smugglers, and thus rendered himself justly liable to the penalties to which they were obnoxious; and at the same time gave, as far as was in his power, the sanction of the British nation to this unrighteous violation of the Chinese laws.

A: "See 'Thelwall's Iniquities of the Opium Trade,' and 'King's Opium Crisis,'"

"'The following fact is, however, not so generally known. An individual,[B] now in this country, who has acquired immense wealth by this unlawful trade, has been in communication with the Government, and his advice, it is presumed, has in no small degree influenced the measures they have adopted; though a leading partner in a firm to which a large proportion of the opium that was destroyed belonged; and at the very time he was claiming compensation, or urging a war with China, his house in India was sending armed vessels loaded with opium, along the coast of China, and selling it in open defiance of the laws of that Empire. This information, with the names of the vessels and the parties concerned, the number of chests of opium on board, the enormous profits they were realizing, et cet., was some time ago communicated to the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs, on authority which he did not and could not dispute.'

B: "This individual is in the new House of Commons, professedly as a reformer, and represents a borough which formerly sent to that House one of its most upright members, who has now retired from public life.

"On the 7th of April, Sir James Graham brought forward a motion in the House of Commons, in reference to this subject, but in a manner which gave it so much of a party character, that our cruel injustice to the Chinese, and the disgraceful conduct of our Government in attacking them, was lost sight of by many, whose professed principles ought to have made them foremost in condemning these proceedings. The Whig Ministry having intimated they would resign if Sir J. Graham carried his motion, every other consideration was forgotten in anxiety lest a political party should be injured or lose office.

"This feeling not only pervaded the supporters of the Government in the House of Commons, but also extended to many leading religious professors of various denominations; and thus no public feeling sufficiently strong could be raised to counteract in Downing-street, the combined and powerful influence of the East India Company and the wealthy opium smugglers; though public meetings were held in London and many places in the country, and petitions forwarded justly deprecating this war, as one of almost unparalleled iniquity. At the meeting in the metropolis, which was held at Freemason's Hall, and at which the Earl of Stanhope presided, the following resolutions were passed:—

"'1. That this meeting, whilst it most distinctly disavows any party or political objects, and deprecates most strongly any such construction being put upon its efforts, deeply laments that the moral and religious feeling of the country should be outraged—the character of Christianity disgraced in the eyes of the world—and this kingdom involved in war with upwards of three hundred and fifty millions of people, in consequence of British subjects introducing Opium into China, in direct and known violation of the laws of that Empire.

"'2. That, although the Chinese have not been heard in their defence, the statements adduced by the advocates of the war, clearly establish the fact, that the East India Company, the growers of and traffickers in opium, and British subjects who received the protection of the laws of China, have been, throughout, the wrong doers; therefore this meeting (without reference to the conviction of many, that all war is opposed to the spirit and precepts of the gospel,) holds it to be the bounden duty of the government immediately to effect an equitable and pacific settlement of the existing differences with China.

"'3. That all traffic in opium with the Chinese being contraband, the opium which was surrendered to their government was justly confiscated; and that to demand payment from the Chinese, to make reprisals upon them, or, for this country to give compensation to the British merchants thus engaged in smuggling, would be to sanction and even grant a premium on crime.

"'4. That the petition now read be adopted by this meeting, and presented to both Houses of Parliament; and that the Right Honorable Earl Stanhope be requested to present the same to the House of Lords, and Lord Sandon to the House of Commons.

"'5. That the resolutions of this meeting be published at the discretion of the Committee; and that a copy of them in the Chinese language be transmitted, through the High Commissioner Lin, to the Emperor of China.'

"Since this period, I have been in company with several Englishmen who were at Canton at the time of the seizure of the opium; and though some of them were concerned in the trade themselves, and were naturally biassed in favor of their own country, they all agreed in condemning the proceedings of the English. I have recently spent some time in the United States, whose intercourse with China is extensive and frequent, and where the merits of this case are clearly understood by many of the most intelligent and candid-minded citizens; and these, without any exception, considered the acts of the British government in this matter as some of the most flagrant that ever disgraced a civilized, much less a Christian people.

"On my return to this country I found a new administration entering upon office; the members of which have, for the most part, condemned the conduct of their predecessors in relation to this war; and I again, therefore, venture to appeal to the Christian public of my country that they may, without delay, forward petitions, or memorials, strongly urging a reference of the existing differences with China to commissioners mutually appointed, who shall be authorized to adjust them, and also to determine upon the best means of entirely suppressing the guilty traffic in opium. The present government are not yet committed to this cruel war; and may no difference of political views deter you from the faithful discharge of this Christian duty! Even should you not succeed in inducing our rulers to adopt this course, or the overtures of this country be rejected by the Chinese, you will have satisfaction in having made the attempt.

"One-third of the human race are now receiving their impressions of the Christian religion, by its professors waging a murderous war to compel them to make restitution to the contraband opium dealers, for the destruction of this deadly poison, which continues to be grown by the East India Company, and poured into China in defiance of all laws, human and divine. Besides the loss of life sustained by the Chinese, and the fearful mortality amongst the British troops, from the unhealthiness of the climate, it is probable that little short of ten millions sterling has already been expended in naval and military armaments, and the enhanced price of tea and sugar,[A] in the monstrous attempt to force the Chinese to pay about two millions to those opium smugglers. All this, be it remembered, is added to the burdens upon the industry of our own oppressed population.

A: It is well known that the high rate of freights from Calcutta, in consequence of the shipping required for the Chinese expedition, greatly contributed to the late extravagant price of sugar.

"Earnestly desiring that you may be induced to discharge your duty as Christians, and whatever may be the result, acquit yourselves of your share of the national guilt, I conclude with the words of a friend: 'For my own part, I think the present distress of the nation may be the retributive chastisement of our recent atrocious war in China and the East.     *     *     *     All history, and the daily march of events, demonstrate the perpetual retributive interference of an overruling providence. Yet this doctrine, proclaimed as loudly by experience as by revelation, and as legibly written on the page of history as in the Bible, appears to have not the smallest practical influence on the most enlightened statesmen, and the most Christian and enlightened nation in the world.'

"Very respectfully,

"JOSEPH STURGE.

"Birmingham, 9th Month 30th, 1841."
"10th Month 9th, 1841.

"Since writing the foregoing, the intelligence has arrived that Canton has been seized; that 'Gen. Sir Hugh Gough calculates the loss of the Chinese, in the different attacks, at one thousand killed and three thousand wounded;' that the British have extracted six millions of dollars as a ransom for evacuating the city, which the Chinese call 'opium compensation;' and it is but too evident that the work of the wholesale murder of this unoffending people has but begun, for Capt. Elliot, who appears to have been too tender of shedding human blood to please his employers, is recalled, and is succeeded by Sir H. Pottenger, who, it is reported, has instructions from Lord Palmerston to demand fifteen millions of dollars for the opium smugglers, and the whole of the expenses of the war, and to secure the right to the British of planting armed factories in the different Chinese ports.

"Shall history record that no voice was raised by the Christians of Britain against the employment of their money, and that of their starving countrymen, in deeds like these!!"

APPENDIX H. p. 119.

LETTER OF A.L. PENNOCK.

The following letter was addressed by Abraham L. Pennock, conveying his resignation of the office of Vice President of the American Anti-Slavery Society, (old organization,) after the occurrence of the painful divisions in the anti-slavery body, which have been already noticed. This letter is written in an excellent spirit, and clearly developes the cause of the separation.

"TO THE EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE OF THE AMERICAN ANTI-SLAVERY SOCIETY.

"Other reasons than those which will be presented in this letter, made it desirable to me to be released from any official connection with the Anti-Slavery Society. I thought those reasons so well known to some of the delegates from the Pennsylvania Society, and withal they were deemed by me of so much value, that I felt both surprise and regret at understanding that my name was continued as one of the vice presidents of the Parent Society. Thus saying, I am, nevertheless, bound to express my indebtedness for the kind feeling toward me, and confidence in my love for the slave, which, doubtless, induced the appointment.

"By an accident to my anti-slavery newspapers, I have just received the proceedings of the society at the above meeting. I am sorry to find in them superadded reasons for regret at my appointment, as that appointment seems to place me in the false position of appearing to be in favor of its leading measures; some of which, denunciatory of co-laborers in the abolition cause, have not my unity.

"In the heavy responsibilities of the former Executive Committee, I find a sufficient reason for their transfer of the 'Emancipator' and other property for which they stood personally engaged; and I therefore cannot join in affirming such transfer to be 'a flagrant breach of trust;' and their answer in justification of their course, 'an attempt to defend which betrays an utter disregard of the rights of abolitionists.'

"Believing in the intellectual equality of the sexes, I go fully for women's rights and duties. They possess a moral force of immense power, which they are bound to exert for the good of mankind; including emphatically so, those who are in the hopeless and most wretched condition of slaves. The belief of the value of female co-operation is common to the anti-slavery community; and the only question regarding it which has arisen, is, whether it shall be exerted in societies and conventions of women, or in societies and conventions of men and women, irrespective of sex. The question is of recent date, not even coeval with the modern anti-slavery enterprise; and the practice, at the origination of this enterprise, that of separate action. We can all bear testimony to the powerful impression upon the public mind, made by women, acting singly or in societies and conventions, before it was thought of merging their influence in a joint stock community with their brethren. Where can we find an anti-slavery organization more potential, and so dignified, as was the convention of American women? Is it therefore surprising that the question has not been conclusively settled by American abolitionists, that women ought to act identically on the same platform and in the same society with men; and that the practice, founded on this plan, still remains measurably local, and, by many conforming to it, is deemed experimental?

"In convening a World's Convention, no innovation upon the general social usages was contemplated by our brethren in England who called it. The convention was meant to be a convention of men; and what was deficient of explicitness in the first notice was amply made up in the reiteration of the call. It was fully known before the appointment of delegates by the American Anti-Slavery Society that the intention of the committee of the British and Foreign Anti-Slavery Society was such as is above explained. The views of the inviting party being known, it was competent to the invited to accept or reject the invitation, but not to modify its terms. The American Society, however, in face of the invitation, with a knowledge of the extreme sensitiveness of that portion of the British people whom the Convention would deem it important to conciliate, to any innovation upon established forms, and itself not united in discarding the distinctions of sex, resolved to send female delegates to the Convention, and thus, in effect, to appeal from the Committee to the paramount authority of the Convention, and with it to settle the American question.

"In exercising this authority we are to suppose, from the high moral, intellectual, and philanthropic standing of its members, the Convention, in adhering to the general usages of society, meant to perpetuate no injustice; and we know, from their very respectful attention to the rejected delegates, that they were influenced by no want of courtesy—I am satisfied that they acted according to their best impressions of duty, the carrying out of which was their high aim; and that the Convention was not the less a World's Convention because it did not embrace both sexes as its members, or any reforms without the scope of its call. I cannot unite, therefore, in the resolutions declaring the proceedings of the British and Foreign Anti-Slavery Society 'arbitrary and despotic;' or the act of the London Conference, excluding the female delegates of the American Society appointed in contradiction to the terms of the invitation, as 'highly disrespectful to the delegates, and to us, their constituents, tyrannical in its nature, mischievous in its tendencies, and unworthy of men claiming the character of abolitionists.'

"Thus my views not being in harmony with the action of the society, in the particulars above referred to, my duty to it and myself is, to tender you this as my resignation of the office of Vice President for Pennsylvania, and not to await another election for withdrawing from it.

"With no heart for the controversies which have got in among my brethren, the common friends of the enslaved, and which are sadly wasting their anti-slavery strength, but with a warm heart for the legitimate objects of the American Anti-Slavery Society, I shall not cease anxiously to desire its prosperity and speedy triumph with these just limitations.

"Your friend,

"(Signed) ABRAHAM L. PENNOCK.

"Haverford, 6th Month 28th, 1841."

APPENDIX I. p. 146.

GERRIT SMITH'S SLAVES.

Extract of a Letter from James Cannings Fuller to Joseph Sturge.

"DEAR FRIEND,—Doubtless thou hast often thought of the visit to our mutual friend, Gerrit Smith, and dwelt on the recollection with pleasure. As thou requested me to furnish thee with the result of the case which was brought under our notice from the correspondence in the case of Sam and Harriet, I cheerfully comply, by giving thee a somewhat detailed account, believing it may be interesting to thee, and not unproductive of benefit to others.

"There are in America no small number of individuals whose circumstances, by parental gift or marriage endowments, are similar to those of our dear friend, Ann Carroll Smith. I would there were a host prepared, like her and her noble husband, to do sacrifice of their substance on the altar of human rights.

"Ann Carroll Fitzhugh is the daughter of the late Col. Wm. Fitzhugh, a slaveholder, who formerly resided in Hagerstown, Maryland. About twenty-three years ago, he removed to Geneseo, New York. Twenty human chattels, whom he brought with him, became free by the law of 1817; the remainder were left on his plantation, in Maryland. Mammy Rachael, who nursed the Colonel's wife, on the births of James Fitzhugh and his sister Ann, gave to the former a boy, who was named Sam; and to the latter a girl, called Harriet. They grew up together, and ultimately formed a strong attachment. When Ann Fitzhugh was about eighteen years old, her brother wrote to inquire if she would give him Harriet, that she might become Sam's wife. When it is considered that Ann was young and inexperienced; that she had been educated to consider slavery right; that the doctrine of inalienable personal ownership had not then been urged; and that the idea of bestowing a wife on her brother's slave was naturally pleasing, it is no marvel that she cheerfully granted the request.

"James Fitzhugh removed from Maryland to Kentucky. In the course of events, his pecuniary affairs became embarrassed, and creditors grew clamorous for the adjustment of their claims. His effects were likely to be sold by the sheriff, and it was reported he had no legal title to Harriet. Under these circumstances, Gabriel Jackson prevailed on him to transfer Sam, his wife, and first-born child, to him, in payment of his debt. This man afterwards sold them to Samuel Worthington, a cotton planter of Mississippi; whose letter, in reply to Gerrit Smith, arrived the day we were at his house; and he being in doubt how to effect the redemption of the family, and their safe transportation, thou wilt remember that I agreed to effect both, to what I shall call the Elysian Fields, or, more properly, Eden. I started on the 26th of Seventh Month, via Lake Erie and the Erie Canal, which extends from north to south three hundred and nine miles through the State of Ohio. From the canal I took steam-boat down the Ohio, to Maysville, Kentucky. The mistress of the Eagle Hotel sat at her table as a queen, surrounded by many slaves. There seemed to be twice as many hands to do the work as were needful.

"From Maysville to Lexington (sixty-five miles) is the best road I ever travelled, not excepting the English roads. It is made and repaired with whitish limestone, from beginning to end. They told me the repairs were principally made by Irishmen, as slaves were not to be trusted to do the work. At starting, I observed that the mail bags were nearly empty; and the driver being questioned, informed me, that I could carry the whole mail in my coat pockets. When he told me he was a Pennsylvanian, I asked whether he could not earn as much in a free, as in a slave State. He said that eighteen dollars a month was the most he ever received for driving a team in a free State, and that now he received thirty dollars a month. This opened the way for a little anti-slavery talk. 'Last Sunday night,' said he, 'I saw a big black man making the best of his way for Canada; I might have stopped him, and had the reward of two hundred dollars, which was offered.'

"I asked him whether it was best to have God's blessing, with the fruits of his honest industry, or his curse, with two hundred dollars blood money. He answered, with moistened eyes, 'I wish all the slaves were free,' to which I responded, 'Amen.'

"Some incidents connected with the escape of this negro, go to prove that slaves can 'take care of themselves,' by a little ingenuity, when occasion requires. Thinking it would be more expeditious, as well as more agreeable, to ride from slavery than to run from it, he took a horse; whether his master's or not, I did not ascertain. The turnpike gates were a great hindrance, and greatly increased the risk of apprehension. To avoid this, just before reaching a turnpike gate, he let down a fence, carefully put it up again, to avoid pursuit, passed round the back of the keeper's house, and came out through the fence beyond. As he was remounting his horse on one of these occasions, the driver came up with him. Supposing him to be one of the keeper's family, he wished him good night, but instantly discovered by his voice that he was a colored man, putting his horse to full speed. When he returned to Paynestown, he heard people talking about a runaway, and told Dr. Whitehead he believed he had seen the man the night before: 'I hope that he'll get safe into Canada,' was the reply.

"'How can you say that, and be a slave-holder?' asked the coachman.

"'I wish there were no slaves,' replied he; 'and as soon as others will liberate theirs, mine shall go free.'

"Stage coaches afford no facilities to the poor fugitives. By the law of the United States' Government, no colored man can drive a mail stage; neither can any colored man ride on one, unless he is known to be free, or is a slave travelling with his master. Stage owners incur heavy penalties if they infringe these rules. A verdict of one thousand six hundred dollars was lately recovered by a slave-master against the company.

"At Washington the stage was stopped to know if a colored boy could be put on. 'Yes; where is he?' 'Up at the jail yonder.' The querist took a seat inside; and soon after I spied a colored man on the outside, with keepers. He was a re-captured runaway, who had taken a horse with him, and imitated the Israelites, in borrowing various other articles, when he escaped from bondage. He assumed false whiskers and a pair of spectacles; and on reaching the Ohio river, produced free papers duly stamped with the county seal. But, unfortunately, when questioned where he had staid the preceding night, he foolishly attempted to describe the place, and was thus detected; two hundred dollars had been offered for him if taken out of the State, and one hundred dollars if taken in the State. To ride in a stage, with a man behind, whose legs and arms were fastened together with rivetted chains and padlocks, was enough to make one feel the force of Patrick Henry's exclamation, 'Give me liberty, or give me death!' It was a poor consolation to administer to the gnawings of his hunger, while beholding his manly frame thus manacled: but I thought he seemed to eat my gingerbread with a better relish, when I told him it was made where colored men were free. At Payne's tavern, in Fairview, the poor fellow had to undergo an examination from the landlord, and listen to a homily about truth-telling; so little do slave-holders seem aware that stealing and lying are constituent parts of their own system. In the stage office at Lexington, we encountered the man who claimed this poor fugitive. The driver, who had come with us the two last stages, was a native of Duchess Co., N.Y.; and he began to plead with the slave-holder in behalf of the slave. I heard of another case where the angry master threatened to flog and sell a recovered runaway, whom he had with him; but the stage driver remonstrated with him so effectually, that he wept like a child, and promised forgiveness to his slave.

"Having a great desire to see the imported cattle on Henry Clay's plantation, I went thither. On approaching the house I saw a colored man, to whom I said, 'Where wert thou raised?' 'In Washington.' 'Did Henry Clay buy thee there?' 'Wilt thou shew me his improved cattle?' He pointed to the orchard, and said the man who had charge of them was there. As I followed his direction, I encountered a very intelligent-looking boy, apparently eight or nine years old. I said to him, 'Canst thou read?' 'No.' 'Is there a school for colored people on Henry Clay's plantation?' 'No.' 'How old art thou?' 'Don't know.' In the orchard I found a woman at work with her needle. I asked 'How old art thou?' 'A big fifty.' 'How old is that?' 'Near sixty.' 'How many children hast thou?' 'Fifteen or sixteen.' 'Where are they?' 'Colored folks don't know where their children is; they are sent all over the country.' 'Where wert thou raised?' 'Washington.' 'Did Henry Clay buy thee there?' 'Yes.' 'How many children hadst thou then?' 'Four.' 'Where are they?' 'I don't know. They tell me they are dead.' The hut, in which this 'source of wealth' lives, was neither as good, nor as well floored as my stable. Several slaves were picking fruit in the orchard. I asked one of the young men whether they were taught to read on this plantation, and he answered, 'No.' I found the overseer of the cattle with a short handled stout whip, which had been broken. He said it answered both for a riding whip, and occasionally 'to whip off the slaves.'

"What, my friend, is to be learned from these gleanings at Ashland?—from the doings of our mutual friend, Joseph John Gurney's 'dear friend,' Henry Clay: the man who boasts that 'every pulsation of his heart beats high for liberty,' yet is not ashamed to buy men and women at the Capitol!—that place which, above all others, ought not to be cursed by the footsteps of a slave. Yet I fear there are not wanting in the abolition ranks men so wedded to political party, that they may be tempted to vote for Henry Clay; serving their party and themselves thereby, and perchance thinking they serve their country.

"Do not think Clay a sinner above all other men. His slaves appeared to be well fed and well clothed. Indeed, the general superiority of condition in Kentucky slaves, over those of Maryland and Virginia, cannot fail to strike the most superficial observer.

"Pursuing my journey, I came to Blue Lick, whose waters are celebrated throughout the United States. At the spring I found several men, white and colored. I asked if I could have a drink. A white man said the waters were free to all. I asked, 'Will they make all free?' They again replied that the spring was free to all. 'I perceive thou dost not understand my question,' said I. But the countenances of the colored men brightened, and, with a cheerful tone, they answered significantly, 'We know what you mean.'

"I found Samuel Worthington quite a different person than his letters had led me to imagine. When I introduced myself he appeared nervous and embarrassed. He was a Kentuckian by birth, but having met with reverses in fortune he went to Mississippi, and became an overseer; first on a salary of six hundred dollars, and afterwards two thousand dollars. He now owns a cotton plantation, with about one hundred and twenty slaves, and is reputed wealthy. He is considered an accomplished gentleman, of sound, discriminating, and feeling mind. I believe he is a kind master, in the common acceptation of the term; that is, he feeds and clothes his slaves well, and does not overwork them, though the overseer's whip is the stimulus to labor. He gave me some account of provision; but the only item I remember is, that he cured twenty-five thousand pounds of pork annually, for his slaves. Far be it from me to say any thing disrespectful of him, except that he is a slave-holder; a word which, in my view, comprises 'the sum of all villany,' In my transactions with him, I found him fair and honorable, as far as it can be honorable to sell human flesh.

"He said he had long since received a letter from J. Fitzhugh, concerning Sam's family; but as he knew their situation would not be bettered by being transferred to him, he had taken no notice of the application. When Gerrit Smith's letter came, he supposed that the writer was not in earnest, 'that it was all done for effect, and would end in smoke.' He was surprised to learn, by G. Smith's reply to him, that it was my intention to come to Harrodsburg; he regretted that it was so, as it disturbed him, and might break up his family arrangements. His wife had three small children, one of them a babe, and the proposed arrangements would leave her without assistance. He told me he was not a man to be driven; and I answered that we were well matched on that point, it would, however, be better for us both to ascertain coolly how far we could agree. He began by saying that he did not feel bound to sell the family, in consequence of what he had written to G. Smith; for he had only said that he might be induced to take four thousand dollars for them. After some preliminaries, he proposed that I should have a conversation with Sam; for he did not think he could be prevailed upon to leave him. I assured him I should do no such thing, until he and I had settled the question of dollars and cents. I had no idea of presenting the cup of freedom to Sam's lips, and then having it dashed to the ground. 'I do not believe,' said I, 'that there is a man on these grounds whom I could not induce to go with me from slavery; but if Sam has objections, let me talk with his wife.'

"'No, that will not do,' replied he; 'she would go with you.' 'Yes,' said I, 'let me talk to your women of a mother's right to herself and her offspring, and then see how many of them you would find willing to remain in bondage!'

"After various pros and cons, we concluded a bargain, subject of course to the parties being willing to leave the 'patriarchal institution.' Three thousand five hundred dollars were to be paid, and both of us together were to have an opportunity of conversing with Sam and his wife. The master probably felt so confident that his slave would not leave him, that he had not patience to wait the promised interview; for he popped the delicate question to him alone. Sam had been informed of the whole progress of the affair, from the time of G. Smith's first letter; and he answered promptly that he would go so that before I met him, that difficult part of the business had 'ended in smoke.'

"S. Worthington's disappointment was the greater because I had told him that I had felt like one of old: 'If the woman will not be willing to follow thee, then thou shalt be clear from this;' that I could go back with a quiet mind; and that the consciences of my friends in Peterboro' would doubtless be satisfied, having given Harriet and her family the liberty of choice, and thus made all the reparation in their power for having ever held her in slavery.

"The large price paid for the redemption of this family may surprise thee, especially if thou hast not forgotten that passage in Worthington's letter where he says, 'I am, to some extent, opposed to slavery; nor do I object to the efforts of abolitionists when done in a good spirit.' It is, however, but justice to say that the description he gave of the family is strictly correct 'They are all sprightly, remarkable for good character, and of course most valuable for house servants.' He said he had repeatedly been offered two thousand dollars for Sam, and he believed he would command that sum any day from those who knew his worth; that his old master prised him very highly, particularly for his moral excellence; and, speaking of his conduct, described him as a 'gentleman.' Yet he talked as if he were certain that Sam and his family would be reduced to beggary if left to themselves at the North! The children, it is true, have had little preparation in slavery for self reliance; for the most favored of them cannot spell their own names.

"S. Worthington said many had inquired of him what business brought me there; and being informed of the object of my mission, they advised him to have nothing to do with me. 'But,' said he, 'though I am certain the condition of Sam and his wife cannot be bettered, I do not think the same with regard to their children; and as Mr. Smith seems disposed to do a kind action, I cannot, in conscience, attempt to frustrate it. If I were to send you home without this family, I should have a troubled mind.'

"One of Worthington's greatest difficulties in parting with these slaves was, that it would leave his wife destitute of servants. I pitied her, and felt it right to express my sympathy. I told her my compassion was increased, because I apprehended there was a struggle in her own breast between duty and interest; and I appealed to her whether she did not know it was a duty to let them go, though personal interest would induce her to keep them in her service. I was glad to perceive that these remarks enabled her to relieve herself of a weight—her countenance brightened up, and she appeared quite willing I should take them away. She showed great kindness to Harriet and her children, and evidently felt deeply moved at parting with the nurse, who had thrice been with her through nature's sorest trials. She appeared to me to be a nice lady-like person; and, if I judge aright, she knows what estimate ought to be placed upon slavery in a woman's mind.

"Those who know me will not suspect that I sought to conceal my abolition, even in the hot-bed of slavery. Yet I assure thee I had no intention of making it a common topic of conversation, unless the way appeared to open; but thy experience, I doubt not, as well as mine, proves that it is ever opening. The most we need to do is to embrace opportunities, without seeking to make them. I had not expected to say as much as I did, but it was such a curiosity for a Quaker to be seen in such company, that it was soon universally known why I had come and what I had done. This gave rise to many conversations with slave holders, which I trust did some good. I was astonished at their extreme ignorance concerning the laboring population of the North. Thou wilt perhaps be surprised to hear me assert that slave holders do not know what slavery is. Still more strange will it seem when I tell thee that thy old friend was highly complimented by them for his prudence and discretion! The story had become current that I would not talk to Sam till I had settled the business with his master; and as they generally professed to believe that abolitionists wished to incite the slave against their master, by every mischievous incentive they could devise, my conduct naturally enough seemed to them remarkable. I told them I must honestly abjure such complimentary language; for, so far from being what they would consider discreet, I was in fact an abolitionist of the most ultra school. I assured them that most of my associates at the North would have proceeded as I had done, and some of them probably with more discretion. I like much better to talk to a southerner on slavery than with a northern apologist. I regard him as far less mean. There is a mind to be appealed to for facts, and there is a feeling that can be reached by a simple testimony of republican truth. In this, the slave holder sometimes 'sees his face as in a glass; but he goeth away and forgetteth what manner of man he is.'

"As my prudence and discretion had excited observation, I ventured to remark that it would be a great gratification to me, if the slave holders would meet together and let me occupy an hour or so in defining the true position and principles of the abolitionists; but this, as I had expected, was declined.

"When I paid the money, I felt constrained to testify that I could in no degree sanction the principle that man could hold property in man; that the slaves were our equals by creation, and for their salvation, equally with ours, did Christ leave the right hand of the Father to suffer on the cross. I told them that contradictory as it might seem to them, the man who was now paying money for slaves, had such a detestation of the system, that he deemed it a duty to abstain from eating or wearing any of the products of slavery. This seemed to them wondrous strange, and they inquired if there were many at the North who agreed with me in this scruple. I told them yes; that the number was increasing, and that my friend, Gerrit Smith, had abstained from slave produce for many years.

"A few hours previous to my final departure one after another gathered around me, and as we stood in the open piazza, I said what I could to explain the principles and practice of abolitionists. I think S. Worthington felt a little hurt at my being thus engaged, for when the stage drove up, he came in great haste to inform me that it was ready. I found it surrounded by many persons, principally colored, who had assembled to bid farewell to the objects of my charge. Their master shook each slave by the hand and bade them farewell. I observed him as we moved away, and thought he seemed to be a good deal moved from some cause or other.

"I took care that coachman and passengers should be informed of the history of Sam and his wife; and some one or other of them was sure to make it a subject of conversation wherever we stopped. At Lawrenceburg, where we put up for the night, the landlord was also stage proprietor and a slave holder. He tried to make me believe that his slaves were much better off than himself. He enumerated his troubles and perplexities in contrast with the blessed freedom from care enjoyed by his slaves. I told him he had made out his case very well; but to test his sincerity, I merely wished him to declare candidly, whether he should be altogether willing that himself and family should exchange places with a slave family. The test was too severe, and he walked off. Two young men at table then took up the conversation. The tyranny which slavery exercises over the entire community, was illustrated by the assertion that the head of a certain college did not dare to acknowledge himself an abolitionist; for if he did he would lose his office, which brought him in a good salary; and, moreover, the people of D---- would dismiss him from his pastoral charge. I of course took the ground that he could not be a truly Christian minister, who would purchase his bread and cheese at the expense of denying his own belief, or suppressing his own convictions.

"My host inquired whether I would sit at table with colored people; and he seemed much surprised when I answered, 'I do not judge persons by their complexion, but by moral worth. At my own table I sit with colored people, and I shall with these.'

"The South, however, is much more free from prejudice against color than the north; provided the distinction between the classes is understood.—A gentleman may seat his slave beside him in a stage coach, and a lady makes no objection to ride next a fat negro woman, even when the thermometer is at ninety degrees; provided always that her fellow travellers understand she is her property.

"At Shelbyville the stage was likely to be crowded with new passengers, when I said to some young men who were about to get in, that I had a family with me who must not be turned out of the seats they had occupied. Samuel and his family took their accustomed seats, and those who could not find room rode on the roof of the coach; among them was a member elect of the Legislature. As we started, a well dressed man, among the crowd at the tavern-door, called out, 'Go it abolition!'

"A crowd at this place attracted my attention, and I found it was an executor's sale; comprising 'lands, houses, furniture, horses, cows, hogs, and twenty likely negroes.' Slaves must, however, be more of a cash article than other commodities; for they were to be sold on four months' credit; real estate, on twelve and twenty four months, and all other property, six months'.

"At Louisville, we fell in with Elisha, brother of Samuel Worthington, on his return to Arkansas, where he had a cotton plantation. He manifested much openness and good will, and pressingly invited me to visit him, should I ever go down the Mississippi. After considerable conversation on slavery, he asked me what I thought would be the effect of my late visit. I replied, it was a subject I had often contemplated myself, but I did not know whether it had entered the heads of others. For my own part, I thought I had taught the slaveholders a lesson. They maintained that the slaves did not want their freedom; yet here was one, well fed and well clothed, and in fact living in clover, as far as a slave could do so, ready, without my asking him, to go with me among strangers. If he would leave such a kind master, what might not be expected of the oppressed field hand?

"'Perhaps a quotation from Latimer would furnish you with a more direct reply to your question,' said I, 'You know he said at the stake—"We shall this day light such a fire in England, as I trust, by God's grace, will never be put out." And I believe my visit has kindled a flame of liberty in Harrodsburg, that shall burn for years to come; and, by its light, I trust, that many will find their way into Canada.'

"I told him, too, I had a question to ask, and I wanted a direct answer—yes, or no. 'Were the slaves any worse off, since the question of abolition has been agitated?'

"He said they were not, excepting in one respect. Formerly, when a preacher came among them to hold meetings with the slaves, they had no objection; but now, they feared that slaves from different plantations might thus congregate together and plot mischief. I asked him if slaves in Mississippi were aware of abolition efforts in the North; and he said he believed they were.

"We parted with Samuel at Louisville, we taking the steam boat for Cincinnati, and leaving him to proceed to Worthington plantation for his boys. He stood and watched the departure of our boat with a soul full of emotion. He felt himself a connecting link between his sons in distant Mississippi, and his wife and daughters on their way to Peterboro'; and I was glad to see nature and affection gush forth in tears. They say colored people cannot take care of themselves, but I assure thee I had hard work to make these people move a step, till a safe plan was arranged for their absent children.

"When I went to pay the captain my fare, he asked whether the colored woman and girls were my property. I answered yes; but explained to him my peculiar situation, and I told him I detested the very name of slavery. He said they usually asked for a reference, but he felt sure that a person of my appearance would not tell him a falsehood. I told him I would show him my bill of sale, as soon as the hurry had subsided; not because I acknowledged his right to demand it, but because he was civil and polite, and I was willing to satisfy him. When I showed him the bill, he knew both the seller and the witness, as I had expected. I asked him whether, if I had brought a barrel of lard on board, he would have troubled me to prove property? He apologized by saying, that they had been imposed on by white men, who put slaves on board, under the pretence that they were free; and that the owners of the line had been obliged to pay six thousand dollars for fugitive slaves. I noticed there were no colored hands on board.

"On arriving at Buffalo, we put up at the Mansion House; and the first object that caught my eye was an advertisement, dated LIBERTY, in Missouri, offering three hundred dollars reward for three fugitive slaves. This is a free state with a vengeance! No stage riding for colored people here; moreover, it was with great difficulty I could obtain breakfast for my companions, though I had paid for it. I hope abolitionists will keep clear of such a pro-slavery atmosphere as surrounds the Mansion House.

"On board the cars, Colorophobia again began to rage; but the agent soon quelled it, by finding other seats for two persons, who thought better of themselves than others did of them. In the stage to Auburn, difficulty again occurred, and the driver wanted to return my money, when some of the passengers objected to the complexion of some of my companions. I told him the stage was too crowded to hold us at any event; but unless he sent us on to Auburn in good season, I should teach the company a lesson they would not soon forget. He did so; and I arrived safely at my own house, after an absence of twenty-six days, and a travel of one thousand eight hundred and sixty-five miles. The whole cost of redemption, including our travelling expenses, was three thousand five hundred and eighty-three dollars and eighty-one cents. (£807.)

"We had not been long there before Harriet said to my wife, 'Madam, I return you a thousand thanks for letting your gentleman fetch us;' and I believe she said no more than she felt, and I felt the force of her grateful acknowledgments.

"After two days' rest, we proceeded to Gerrit Smith's; where, as thou mayest well believe, we received the friendly welcome which those are wont to receive who visit his house.

"Skaneateles, 9th Month 14th, 1841."

APPENDIX K. Page 159.

The Society of Friends in America and the Colonization Society.

The "Friends" alluded to in the text as supporting the Colonization Society in a collective capacity, are those of North Carolina. In 1832 two influential "Friends" appeared at the Annual Meeting of the Colonization Society, as delegates from the Society of Friends in North Carolina. One of the resolutions passed at the time, is as follows:—"That the thanks of this Meeting be presented to the Society of Friends in North Carolina, for the aid they have liberally bestowed and repeatedly rendered to the cause of African Colonization." The Yearly meeting of Friends in North Carolina stands among the donors of that year, as having contributed five hundred dollars to the Colonization Society. I fear no change has since taken place in the favorable disposition of "Friends" of that region towards this institution, for during one of my visits to Philadelphia, I was informed by a "Friend," just returned from North Carolina, that an agent of the Colonization Society had been recently permitted to make an appeal before the members of the "Meeting of Sufferings" of that Yearly Meeting, which had afterwards granted him two hundred dollars out of the common stock of the Society. Nothing is more certain than that approbation of the principles and measures of the Colonization Society, cannot co-exist with any lively desires for the extinction of slavery, by the only practical means—emancipation; and accordingly I was not surprised to find it urged by some prominent individuals as a reason for their own inactivity, and that of the Society at large, on this subject, that "Friends" living within the slave States, urged their brethren at the North not to unite with the Anti-slavery Societies. It appears, however, that "Friends" of North Carolina do not, at all events, object to uniting or co-operating with those of other denominations, in promoting an object which they approve. Their objection to abolition societies evidently rests on quite different grounds.

I must here be permitted to say a few words, respecting the character and objects of the society, thus officially patronized by the Friends of North Carolina.

The greatest objection to this society, is its representing slavery, and the prejudice against color, as necessary and incurable evils, for which its own mockery of a remedy is the only palliative; and thus administering an opiate to the consciences, not only of slave-holders, but of others who are unwilling to part with their sinful prejudices, and to enter into that fellowship of suffering with the enslaved, without which no efforts for the removal of slavery will be effectual.

The following extracts, elucidating this subject, are from a printed letter written by a friend of high station and extensive influence, then residing in North Carolina, but now of the State of Indiana, in defence of the Colonization Society. It is dated "Third Month 4th, 1834," and I suppress his name, because time and reflection have, I believe, in some degree modified his views.

Speaking of the opposition of Friends in England to the Colonization Society, he says, "I have supposed that they would think it more consistent with Christian principles to emancipate them in the Southern States, and let them remain there, as they have done in the Northern States. I apprehend that Friends in England are not fully apprised of some important circumstances, which place the Southern States in a very different situation from the Northern. In the first place, there never were so many people of color in the Northern States, as there are in the Southern; and another circumstance that diminished them there, and increased them greatly here, was while the Northern States were legislating on the subject of gradual emancipation, avaricious masters sent them by thousands to the Southern markets, before the emancipating laws were actually passed, which left a small proportion in those States, in comparison to the whites; not many more, perhaps, than they were willing to have for laborers, waiting men, waiting women, et cet. And notwithstanding they have freed their slaves, for which they are entitled to applause, yet they never dreamed of raising them to equal citizenship and privileges with the white people. No, my friend, they can no more reconcile to themselves the idea of sitting down by the side of a colored African, (American?) in any legislative or judiciary department, than the high spirited Southern slaveholder; and not only so, they never intend to admit them to these privileges, while the State Government, and the United States' Government continue in existence." Again, after stating various objections to emancipation, he goes on to say, "I need not dwell much upon the subject of universal emancipation, in stating the best, or the worst, or most probable results of such a measure, because the Southern people have no more idea of the general emancipation of slaves, without colonizing them, than the Northern people have of admitting the few among them to equal rights and privileges. Not even the friends of humanity here, think that a general emancipation, to remain here, would better their condition," et cet.

The inferences plainly to be drawn from all this, and from much besides to the same purport, are, that the wicked determination of the white people to retain their sinful prejudices, is, like the laws of the Medes and Persians, immutable; and must, therefore, be accommodated by the transportation of the unoffending objects of their intense dislike. On this point I will observe that, if it be so, the remedy is worse than the disease; but that Christian principle is powerful enough, as daily experience testifies, to combat and destroy this unholy prejudice. The next inference is, that because the slave population in the Southern States is much more numerous than it was in the Northern, therefore the same reasons for emancipation do not exist. Is not the true conclusion from such premises, the very reverse of this? The motives to abolition increase, both in weight and number, in proportion to the absolute and relative increase of the slave population. The British West Indies present an example of the safety and advantages of the measure in a community, where the whites are a mere handful compared to the colored population.

That state of feeling from which the Colonization Society sprung, is well illustrated by this writer, in giving, in natural language, a picture of his own mind. After again repeating his statement of the vast proportion which the colored population bears to the white, in the Slave States, he says, "Now, my friend, the general emancipation of such a number of these poor, degraded creatures, say more than two millions, always to remain here with the white people, even if the Government should take the necessary care for their education and preparation for freedom and civilized life, which to be sure it ought, they must or will be a degraded people, while the reins of government remain in the hands of the whites. Supposing the very best consequences that could follow such a measure, even that both classes should generally exercise Christian feelings towards each other, which is very improbable, if not morally impossible, the peculiarly marked difference of features and color, will be always an insurmountable barrier to general amalgamation." Again, "Were they of the same color and features that we are, in an elective republican government like this, where talents and merit are the common footsteps to esteem and preferment, there would be no difficulty in universal emancipation, without a separation. I have no idea that they are at all inferior to the white people in intellect; give them the same opportunity for enterprise and improvement." Their only sin, it appears, after all, is being "guilty of a skin not colored like our own." I may observe, in passing, that amalgamation, the bugbear of anti-abolitionists, is the necessary result of slavery, not of emancipation.

The preceding extracts present a faithful picture of colonization principles, though it is not every colonizationist who would avow them with so much simplicity. The writer notwithstanding, manifests some benevolent feeling towards the slaves. His conscience cannot be satisfied with the present state of things, and he, like too many others, takes refuge in the pleasing delusion that it would be practicable to convey these colored Americans across the Atlantic and make them comfortable in Africa, because their ancestors were born there. As reasonably and as justly might he talk of transporting the white Americans to England because their ancestors removed from this country.

It is very easily demonstrable, that this could not possibly be accomplished—that neither the means of transport could be found, nor the means of settlement provided; and were these impossibilities removed, it might also be shown, very easily, that it would be suicidal policy to remove the entire laboring population of the Southern States from a soil and climate for which they only are adapted. Yet emancipation by removal is the theory of the Colonization Society, and in this point of view that Society must be characterized as a grand imposture. What must be the power of that delusion which can render intelligent and philanthropic men the victims of such a fallacy? If the whites, who hold the reins of government, could but be brought to exercise Christian feelings towards the people of color, which this worthy friend thinks is perhaps "morally impossible," how rapidly would all difficulties vanish? To accomplish this desirable end is the object of the abolitionists; they feel it to be difficult, but they know it to be not impossible.

The writer of this pamphlet uniformly couples "ultra slaveholders" and "northern manumissionists" in the same censure. They are the two objectionable extremes; colonizationists and moderate slave-holders being, I suppose, the golden mean. One illustration more of the animus with which he regards a black population.

"And so it is with the New England immediate manumissionists; they have so few people of color that they do not consider them an evil; and hence they conclude that the Southern States may do as they have done—free them at once; but I have no doubt at all, if there was as large a proportion of colored people in the New England States as in the Southern, there would be but one voice, and that would be for colonizing them somewhere."

The following passage is historically interesting:

"The Yearly Meeting of Friends of North Carolina have sent several hundreds of those they have had under their care to Liberia, for whose emancipation in this State they could never obtain a law, though they petitioned for it oftentimes for the space of fifty years, always finding the chief objection of the legislature to be that of the great number and degraded and low character of the free persons of color already in the State. We prefer sending them to Africa rather than to any of the free States or to Canada—because we believe that is their proper home. We sent some to the State of Ohio; and since then hundreds of blacks have been in a manner compelled, by the laws of that State, or the prejudices of some of its citizens, to leave it and go to Canada. We have sent some to Indiana, but that State has passed laws, we hear, to prevent any more coming. We have sent some to Pennsylvania, but, about two years ago, we shipped near one hundred from Newbern and Beaufort to Chester; they were not suffered to land, neither there nor at Philadelphia, nor yet on the Jersey shore opposite, but had to float on the Delaware river until the Colonization Society took them into possession; then they were landed in Jersey, ten miles below Philadelphia, and re-shipped for Africa. North Carolina Yearly Meeting has contributed thousands of dollars to the Colonization Society; it has probably done more for it than any other religious community has in America, not merely because it has provided us an asylum for the people of color under our care, but upon the ground of our belief that it is a great, humane, and benevolent institution. I am not informed of a single member of the Society of Friends in this country, not even in any of the slave States, who is not in favor of colonizing them in Africa. We believe generally that colonizing them there gradually is the most likely way to put a peaceful end to slavery, and place them in the great scale of equality with the rest of the civilized world."

I have devoted a space to this letter for several reasons; first, because the writer is a man of note and influence in his own country, and has plainly uttered what many of the Society of Friends even now feel, secondly, he has shown what was the prevalent sentiment among Friends not longer than seven years since, though I hope and believe a considerable change has taken place in the interval; and lastly, because, within a few months past, a well-known American, a zealous agent of the Colonization Society, has privately employed this very letter to induce abolitionists in England to look favorably on that Society.

I would add, also, that I learn, on the authority of an English "Friend," who has lately visited the various Yearly Meetings in America, that in those parts of the slave States in which "Friends" chiefly reside, their influence is very perceptible in mitigating the treatment of the slaves in their neighborhood. This, I willingly believe; indeed the example of a body who refuse to hold slaves, cannot but be highly beneficial.

APPENDIX L.—Page 96.

"Memorial of citizens of Boston, United States, to the Lords of the Admiralty, Great Britain.

"To the Right Honorable the Lords of the Admiralty of Great Britain.

"The undersigned, the citizens of Boston, in the United States of America, of different religious denominations, respectfully represent—

"That by existing arrangements for the sailing of the Cunard line of steamers between Boston and Liverpool, it becomes necessary for them to leave this port on the Sabbath, whenever that happens to be the regular day appointed for sailing; and that this occurs a number of times in the course of a year. That the sailing of a steamer on that day is a source of deep regret to many good citizens, who are compelled, whenever the event happens, either to defer their departure to a future day, or to yield to an arrangement which violates their Christian feelings. And what is still more to be lamented, as a consequence growing out of the present regulation, is that aside from the tumult necessarily attendant on the sailing of these vessels on the Lord's day, it furnishes an occasion for the needless profanation of the day by thousands who assemble as spectators on our wharves to witness their departure.

"The undersigned regard a proper observance of the Sabbath as vital to the general peace, good order, and welfare of society; and they are deeply impressed with the belief that nothing of a secular or worldly nature should be done on that day by individuals, by governments, or by any of their departments, Which is not in the strictest sense a work of necessity or mercy; and they most respectfully represent, that they are unable to perceive any reasons which render the sailing of steamers from this port on the Lord's day such a work. And believing as they do, that it will be the pleasure of your lordships at all times to cherish and promote, so far as you may be able, a due observance of the Sabbath, they respectfully and earnestly request your lordships so to vary the present arrangements as to the times for the sailing of these steamers, that their departure from this port shall be changed to another day, whenever the appointed day for sailing shall fall upon the Christian Sabbath. And they venture to express their confident belief that not only the public welfare, but also the private advantage of individuals concerned in the enterprize, would be ultimately promoted by the arrangements here prayed for.

"The undersigned cannot conclude their memorial without adverting to the high and responsible station that has been assigned by Providence to the English and American people, in the great work which they and we rejoice to know is now so rapidly progressing, of improving the moral and religious character and condition of the world; nor can they be unmindful of the fact, that to the same extent as their standing before the world in this respect is permanent, so will be the influence of their example on the nations around them, whether it be good or bad.

"That the subject here presented may receive your Lordship's favorable and Christian consideration is the sincere and earnest desire of your Lordships' most respectful memorialists."

The signatures to this document included the late mayor and one of the former ones, who was also Lieutenant-Governor of the State of Massachusetts, one bishop, upwards of forty clergymen of different denominations, nine gentlemen, upwards of one hundred and twenty merchants, seventeen presidents of insurance companies, the postmaster of Boston, five physicians, seven members of the legal profession, two editors of newspapers; and it was accompanied by the following memorandum from one of the gentlemen who had taken it round for signature.

"The undersigned having been personally engaged in obtaining the signatures to the memorial, asking a change in the sailing of the Cunard steamers, when the regular sailing day occurs on the Sabbath, hereby certifies that the memorialists are among the most respectable and influential of their respective professions, that the memorial was received with almost universal favor, and that, had time been allowed, and had it been deemed necessary to do it, thousands of names might have been obtained.

"AMOS A. PHELPS."

"Boston, July 31, 1841."

On my arrival in this country, I found that Lord Melbourne's administration was about to resign; I therefore deferred forwarding the memorial until the present ministers had entered upon the duties of their respective offices; when I called at the Admiralty, and placed it in the hands of the Secretary, having little doubt the application would have been at once granted; but a few days after it was presented I received the following reply:—

"Admiralty, September 21, 1841.

"Sir,—Having laid before my Lords Commissioners of the Admiralty the communications of the citizens of Boston, United States, representing their wish that the departure of Mr. Cunard's steamers on a Sunday, from their port, should, for the future be discontinued; I am commanded by their lordships to acquaint you, that after having given that attention to the subject, which their respect for the citizens of Boston, and for the religious opinions expressed by them, could not fail to dictate, my lords have, upon mature consideration, come to the conclusion, that, with a due regard to the exigencies of the public service, the proposed alteration cannot be carried into effect. My lords, therefore, beg you will have the goodness to convey their decision to the citizens of Boston, together with the assurance of their respect for the opinions they have expressed, and their consequent regret at being unable to comply with their request.

"I am, Sir,

"Your most obedient humble servant,

"JOHN BARROW.

"Joseph Sturge, Esq., Birmingham."

1842 By JOSEPH STURGE.

*** END OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK A VISIT TO THE UNITED STATES IN 1841 ***

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Table of Contents

- A VISIT TO THE UNITED STATES IN 1841

- PREFACE TO THE AMERICAN EDITION.

- PREFACE TO THE ENGLISH EDITION.

- A VISIT, &c.

- GENERAL OBSERVATIONS

- APPENDIX.

- APPENDIX A. p. 30. ANTI-SLAVERY EPISTLE OF "FRIENDS" IN GREAT BRITAIN.

- APPENDIX B. p. 30. EARLY EFFORTS OF "FRIENDS" IN BEHALF OF NEGRO SLAVES.

- APPENDIX C. p. 34. Report of the Committee of the Yearly Meeting of Friends, held in Philadelphia, appointed for the Gradual Civilization, &c., of the Indian Natives, presented to the meeting, Fourth Month 21st, 1841, and directed to be printed for the use of the members.

- APPENDIX D. p. 44. ELISHA TYSON.

- APPENDIX E. p. 68. THE "AMISTAD CAPTIVES."

- APPENDIX F. p. 76. Extract from an Essay by WILLIAM JAY, "On the Folly and Evils of War, and the Means of Preserving Peace."

- APPENDIX G. p. 89. OPIUM WAR WITH CHINA.

- APPENDIX H. p. 119. LETTER OF A.L. PENNOCK.

- APPENDIX I. p. 146. GERRIT SMITH'S SLAVES.

- APPENDIX K. Page 159. The Society of Friends in America and the Colonization Society.

- APPENDIX L.—Page 96. "Memorial of citizens of Boston, United States, to the Lords of the Admiralty, Great Britain.

- THE FULL PROJECT GUTENBERG LICENSE